Beast Wars: Crystal Cybertron
by Shritistrang
Summary: The Beast Wars take an unexpected turn when the Senshi of Time gets turned into a Predacon... and she wants to invite her fellow Senshi as well. Tremble with fear, Time Splitter is here...
1. Cockroach of Time

Author's Note: Please realize that this is the original Beast Wars: Crystal Cybertron Story I wrote. I asked Hinatafanboy to put the story up here in for me, but since he doesn't seem to update it anymore, I will do it myself. Please not that I am the real author of this story, you can also find it here:

http://addventure.bast-enterprises.de/frecent.php?tagBeast Wars - Crystal Cybertron

----

Somewhere, where no normal human can get without help, was a very special place.

It was a place at the edge of the stream of time itself, situated at the crossroads of Past, Present and Future. And while this place has been existed since the beginning of time, a certain, ancient civilization that no longer exists, has built a certain gate there, allowing the guardian of that place to have access to the past and the future.

Using these gates, she was able to watch over the timeline, and ensured that 'no bad stuff happens', as she usually puts it.

These were the Gates of Time. And their guardian was Sailor Pluto.

Known in her civilian disguise as Setsuna Meioh, she had not that much time to spend in her normal, 'mundane' life.

Still, since the awakening of a certain Senshi called Saturn, she had enjoyed the company of the young girl together with her foster parents, Neptune and Uranus. And she actually liked it, so much that she decided to move into their home as well.

But now, having returned to the Gates of Time after a slightly longer period of time than usual, she realized that time was... scrambled up, as you could say.

"I don't believe it..." Pluto muttered. "I'm taking just one little vacation, and now look how the number of possible futures has grown..." She felt a headache coming. "I better start cleaning them up right now, or else they will multiply within a week."

And that would mean even more work for her. With a sigh, she walked into the room that was adjacent to the portal chamber of time... the Archives of Time.

She pulled a few folders out of one of the many filing cabinets in here, and compared them to the various timelines that were visible to her.

"Where to begin, where to begin," she sighed. She already felt this was going to be a long day of work. For her friends, it might feel as if she will have left for only a couple of minutes, but for her, it could pretty much turn out to be a couple of days.

----

After what seemed to be several hours for the Senshi of Time, she had actually managed to erase most of the more unpleasant future versions by changing just a bit in history.

She shook her head as she looked at the magical lamp in her hand. She just managed to get it away from that boy in time.

"It just had to be one of those furry fans," she grumbled. Hadn't she stopped the boy from picking up the lamp, the wish he would have made to the genie inside would have caused a change of worldwide proportions.

'Furry Tokyo' was one of the possible future versions Setsuna did NOT want to live through, thank you very much. Although, when she remembered how she would have looked in that future, she had to admit, she looked nice in black fur.

She then looked back at the wishing lamp in her hands. "I'll have to dispose of this thing in some harmless way," she muttered. "Sooner or later, it will have to find its way back into the timeline... Oh well, I'll see later if I find a person who deserves it... and whose wish doesn't affect all of humanity."

She put the lamp into one one of the many drawers alongside one wall of the archives, each of them containing at least thousands of certain items she had acquired over the centuries.

"Now, on to the next step..." she muttered to herself. She grabbed another folder. "What do we have here? Crystal Tokyo, fine, fine, this may be a possibility."

As long as there was some version of Crystal Tokyo in the future, Pluto was very much gracious in regard of any possible futures.

Well, as long as no 'bad stuff happens'.

She put the folder aside and looked at the next one. "Okay, here we have Crystal..."

She stared.

Crystal WHAT??

"What the heck?" she muttered. "I've never heard of that word before. Crystal Cybertron? What's that supposed to be?"

Oh well, she just had to take a closer look.

She sighed. And she had hoped she could finish the rest of the work in only a couple of hours...

Now she was forced to do some time-hopping herself, until she found out just what this 'Cybertron' was.

Well, it wouldn't be too hard to find, she figured. Intelligent robots did not appear in too many timelines of Earth.

She already figured it would take her some time until she found a clue. She was right.

But she would have NEVER figured she would discover something in THAT time period.

"The stone age?" she wondered. "I really don't want to know how intelligent robots from outer space managed to reach our planet... and during the stone ages of all times."

It only took her a while to find out just how those robots got there.

"A time machine! It just had to be a fing time machine!!"

----

She was in luck. Even if those robots have been on Earth, they didn't affect it's future too much. The version of Earth their ancestors were living on was in an alternate reality, so that was not her concern.

Still, there was this very slight chance that Crystal Tokyo might turn into 'Crystal Cybertron'... and she did not want that to happen.

"Bad stuff..." she murmured to herself. "Very baaad stuff..."

Finally, she found out just what would cause all of her troubles...

Now the only thing she had to do was to find those things and remove them from the timeline, just as she had done it with that magical lamp.

"How am I supposed to find a dozen of stasis pods that have crashed down from their orbit around Earth back in the stone ages?" the Senshi of Time wondered.

----

It was a dark, rocky cave. Not too wet, not too dry. Not too far below the surface of Earth. And it was situated somewhere in Africa.

The oval-shaped stasis pod was lying in one corner of the cave, shimmering like a giant, silver bean.

In a flash of light, Sailor Pluto appeared in the cave.

"Well, I found pod number one," she said in relief. "Now only seven are still missing..."

She approached the motionless object and looked at it. She had a big amount respect for the civilization that was able to create such an amazing piece of technology. What a pity they would never have any contact with them...

Letting her gaze sweep over the stasis pod, it was hard to believe that once, there had been an artificial life form inside it.

Now all that remained was a limp hull, devoid of any life. It's spark long gone, there was no chance that this being would ever come back to life.

Still this technology could very much be the cause of Crystal Cybertron, and Setsuna had to make sure that it didn't.

"I'll have to create an additional storage chamber for these things," she told herself. "Alien technology like this is best treated with special care."

Still, she had to make sure that the ancient, robotic form that was resting within there was indeed without any spark or other form of life.

Recalling images from the past, she reminded herself how to open the stasis pod. With a hissing noise, the hatch opened.

White mist came seeping out of the ancient storage unit as Setsuna looked inside.

She then gasped. "It's empty? But... but how? How could I have missed something like this...?"

"The same way you missed me," an amused voice came from behind her.

Before Pluto could react, the person that stood behind her gave her a firm shove, and she stumbled and fell back into the open stasis pod, along with her Garnet Rod.

She tried getting up again, but it was too late: The hatch of the pod was closing and she was trapped. Behind the dull window of the hatch, she could see a dark, blurry shape that was looming over her.

And then... everything went black.

----

An indefinite amount of time later...

The cave was empty again, except for the stasis pod, which was still lying in its corner. Only that now, it wasn't empty anymore...

Suddenly, a light on its surface started blinking, and a computer voice spoke up: "Scanning and adaption to new form complete! Opening pod!"

Once again, white steam came out as the hatch opened with a hissing noise. For a while, nothing happened.

Then, a pair of extremely long feelers came rising out of the inside. They were followed by a pair of spindly legs. And another one. And another one.

And finally, the whole body of the giant, brown cockroach came crawling out of the stasis pod.

Her feelers twitching and mandibles clicking, the dog-sized insect looked around the cave. She then scurried forward a couple of steps.

"Well..." she then said in a familiar voice. "This is new... but at the same time, pretty exhilarating."

She giggled. "I don't know how this happened, but... I like it."

Now what was that phrase again? Oh yes, she remembered...

"Setsuna... TERRORIZE!"

And in a fluid motion, the cockroach transformed. Standing up on her hind legs, all of her body parts arranged themselves, revealing more human-like components underneath.

She frowned. Setsuna sounded so... so mundane. She would have to find a new name for herself. She then looked down at her new body.

A metallic, female-looking face, robotic limbs, wire-like strands of green, synthetic hair, and parts of her 'Beast Mode' visible on her chest and backside. The long feelers were still attached to her head, just above her eyes. Eyes that no longer had any form of pupil or iris, and which were gleaming yellow.

"I probably won't find out just who did this to me," the newly robotic Setsuna said with a smirk. "But I have to thank him for this."

She strode around the cave experimentally, trying out her new limbs and pulling out her new weapon from a hidden hatch inside her right leg - a device resembling a small handgun.

She laughed to herself. "I feel... reborn! This is so amazing! Never again will I have to fear anything, having both the power of Pluto and those of a Cybertronian robot."

Suddenly, a wicked idea came to her mind. She smiled gleefully. "I just have to share this with my friends... and then we'll pay the stone age a visit. Oh yes, the Beast Wars will get much more interesting... because TIME SPLITTER will bring her friends along to play."

And the freshly transformed Predacon that was once known as Setsuna laughed maniacally.

----

"So... how's Setsuna doing?" Makoto asked.

It was in the early afternoon. The Inner Senshi were all sitting in Rei's room at the Hikawa Shrine, doing what Usagi was dreading the most: Studying for upcoming tests.

Hotaru was with them.

"Well, I don't know, by now she's gone for two days," the purple-haired girl explained. "She said she had really urgent business to attend. Business with the Gates of Time."

"I was wondering," Ami said. "Normally, she would have watched you in Haruka's and Michiru's absence, right?"

Hotaru nodded. "Yes, and she said she was really sorry she couldn't stay during the time Haruka-papa and Michiru-mama are on vacation." She turned around to face Rei. "I really hope I'm not a bother to you or your grandfather..."

Rei smiled. "Don't worry, we have plenty of room for you. And Haruka and Michiru have planned that vacation for such a long time, it wouldn't just feel right to disappoint them."

"But staying away for such a long time, that's not really Setsuna's style," Makoto pointed out. "And normally, after being at the Time Gates, she has always returned shortly after she had left."

"Yeah, that's one of the advantages of being the Guardian of Time," Minako chuckled. "No matter how much you have to do, you'll always have enough time."

"Even more so I'm worried," Makoto said. "She would have informed us if there were any trouble."

"Knowing Setsuna, she would have wanted to take care of it all by herself," Rei sighed.

"I think we are just worrying too much," Ami said. "She will most likely tell us in time if there is anything bad coming up." She opened her math book. "Now, shall we take a look at this Algebra?"

A couple of groans and nods followed. Her friends were not particularly thrilled about it, but they knew it was important. Even Minako submitted to the tiresome habit called studying.

Rei looked around the room. Wasn't there someone at the table missing?

She frowned when she heard a giggle coming from her drawers.

Usagi turned around her head when she heard her black-haired friend approaching. "Rei, you have to take a look at this, it's hilarious!"

Angrily, Rei snatched the corpus delicti out of Usagi's hands.

"STOP READING MY MANGAS!"

The others sighed. "Maybe we should stop having our meetings at Rei's place," Makoto muttered. "So Usagi wouldn't be distracted by her Manga collection..."

Ami was about to reply something, when her Senshi Communicator started to beep.

She activated it. "Yes?"

The furry face of Luna looked back at her. She was using Usagi's communicator, which she had left behind at home, in case of an emergency. "Ami, we have trouble! Something's going on at the shopping mall. They're telling about it on TV."

"We'll take a look at it." She asked Rei to switch on the television set, and her friend nodded.

The camera was showing a chaotic scene in the middle of the shopping mall. All kinds of wares have been thrown out onto the street, and people were running around in a panic. In the distance, police sirens could be heard. A bald commentator was speaking.

"As you can see, it's a scene of chaos. We still can't say for sure who the perpetrator or perpetrators are, but we'll inform you when we learn more. Some people claim to have seen whoever did this..."

The screen switched to the panicked face of a young woman, according to the badge on her shirt, a salesclerk at one of the shops.

"It came out of nothing, I tell you," she said in a shrill voice. "It was disgusting. Like some giant... BUG or something."

The camera switched to a burly man in his 30s, who had a grim expression on his face.

"I'm not kidding, man! That thing was at long as the Doberman pinscher of my great-aunt Mikoto. At least! I always told those guys from the government, if they keep up with those animal experiments, nature's gonna strike back one of those days."

A spindly man with a cane appeared on screen. "Bah, that was nothing but a costume. I've never seen bug feelers that looked this fake. I'm telling you, someone's pulling a big prank on all of us."

The camera switched back to the reporter. "There you have it, people. A prank or the invasion of monsters? We can't say for sure. But the police forces will take care of things around here. We'll report again when we find out more about this."

"A giant bug?" Usagi shivered. "Creepy..."

"What do you say, Luna?" Ami asked. "Do you think it's a leftover Youma from the Negaverse?"

"Might be," the cat replied. "But you should go there and look for yourself. I doubt it's someone pulling a prank, though..."

"We're on it." She switched off the communicator and the TV.

"You heard her," Rei said and stood up. "Let's go!"

"C-can't we let anyone else take care of this?" Usagi whined. "Like, an exterminator or someone like that?"

"Stop whining!" Rei snapped. "We're the Sailor Senshi, so we have to investigate. If it's a Youma, we have to destroy it."

"I don't like it either, but that's what we do," Makoto nodded.

"Yeah, so let's go BUG him!" Minako grinned.

Makoto groaned. "Minako, that was a horrible pun..."

"Hey, at least I got it right this time."

----

Shortly afterwards, the six Senshi were at the scene.

"It always looks worse if you see it for real, instead on the TV screen," Mars sighed. "So, Mercury... can your computer pick anything up?"

Amy pulled out her Mercury Computer and activated her visor. She scanned the area for any unusual readings.

"I have some odd readings in that building over there," she finally said, pointing at a European-style restaurant. "But it's not like anything we have encountered before..."

Suddenly, one of the restaurant's windows broke, as a heavy table came flying out and landed on the street.

"Well, whatever it is, no one's wrecking restaurants when Sailor Moon has anything to say about it," Usagi growled.

"What's gotten into her?" Jupiter wondered. "She's normally not so impulsive..."

Venus sighed. "She and Mamoru had planned to have a romantic dinner in that restaurant at Friday..."

Suddenly, a loud shout came out of the building. A voice that the Senshi knew to well.

"Tuxedo Mask," the gasped in unison and ran towards the entrance.

----

The inside of the restaurant was even more ravaged than the stores outside. Most of the tables and chairs were broken, and Tuxedo Mask was in the middle of the room, ducking under a barrage of dishes.

"I already told you, I want my steak WELL DONE!" a screeching voice exclaimed from the other side of the room. Behind one of the tilted tables, they could see a dark shape, which was throwing plates and saucers at the caped avenger.

"Tuxedo Mask!" Usagi shouted.

"Sailor Moon! Watch out!" Tuxedo Mask grunted. "It's much faster and trickier as it would seem..."

And as on cue, the dark shape suddenly zipped through the room, crawling over wooden splinters and under still standing tables.

"What's wrong?" the voice mocked. "Can't catch me?"

"It's playing with us," Mars realized with an angry frown.

"Well, not for long!" Jupiter growled. "SPARKLING WIDE PRESSURE!"

The ball of electricity headed straight for the unknown enemy, but in the last instant, it jumped straight up and sticked to the ceiling. It quickly crawled to chandelier that was hanging in the middle of the room and hid on top of it.

"Coward!" Jupiter shouted. "Come out and fight like a... a... well, whatever you are!"

The voice giggled. "Impulsive as always, Makoto! You don't know how silly you look like this."

The Senshi and Tuxedo Mask gasped. "It knows my secret identity?" Jupiter muttered.

"Doesn't matter if we take it out right now," Mars growled.

Saturn frowned. "You know... somehow, that voice sounded familiar."

"Haven't got a clue, have you?" the creature snickered. "Well, I'm gonna make it easier for you."

Without any warning, it jumped down from the chandelier and landed right in front of a startled Sailor Moon, who yelped in surprise and fell back on her behind.

Then she screamed in terror at the giant cockroach that was standing in front of her.

"Don't like my looks?" the enormous insect asked. "I can change that... Time Splitter, Terrorize!"

And in a swift movement, the creature erected its body... and turned into a robotic-human-like being with parts of her 'roach costume' attached to her outer shell.

"It's a robot?" Minako wondered. "A robot that can transform?"

The female-looking creature smirked. "I prefer the term 'Predacon'."

Ami reached for her computer again.

An extendable claw reached out and snatched it right out of her hands. "Uh uh uh..." Time Splitter wagged her index finger. "No fair cheating, Ami!"

"Blast you!" Mars screamed. "BURNING MANDALA!"

The fiery attack hit the Predacon in the middle of its chest, and for a while, she doubled over.

Only to look up at the Senshi with a grin. "Oh please," she mocked. "A cockroach can survive the impact of an atomic war... is that the best you can do?"

"Who are you and how do you know our names?" Mars shouted, pissed that her attack didn't seem to faze the robot at all.

"Rei, don't you recognize me? Well, okay, I am kinda different from before... But surely you all recognize this."

She opened a hatch on her breast plate, and a certain, red-glowing orb got visible.

"That's the Garnet Orb!" Venus gasped. "You... what have you done with Sailor Pluto?"

"I don't believe it..." Mercury gasped. "Is that... is that you, Setsuna?"

Saturn's glaive fell to the ground with a loud clatter. The young girl looked at the robotic Senshi with teary eyes.

"Setsuna-mama?" she whimpered. "But... but how?"

"I could explain it, but that would take too much time," the former Senshi sneered. "And I'm called Time Splitter now. To make it short: I'm here to take you all along for a ride."

"A ride?" Venus wondered.

"Yes." Time Splitter nodded. "A ride through time."

"Setsuna, I don't understand." Usagi stood up and looked at her in disbelief. "Why are you like this? Why did you do all this? Why do you want to take us into the past?"

The Predacon smiled. "You'll find out... soon enough!"

And she reached for the Garnet Orb that was embedded within her metal plating.

"STOP HER!" Tuxedo Mask shouted.


	2. Scaredy Cat

Earth, millions of years before the first appearance of the first Homo Sapiens...

In the currently-crashed spaceship of the Maximals, the Axalon (which also served as their base), Rhinox was sitting at his working bench, killing time by working on his newest experiment: A coffee machine made from spare Maximal parts, to create a coffee that is actually edible for robots. He got the idea after viewing a few of those old human Detective Series from Earth. A few of them had managed to appear on the daily Maximal program on TV, and 'Kojak' was his favorite.

Every once in a while, he would take a sidewards glance to the Axalon's main computer, which was scanning the immediate area for any signs of unusual activities, like the appearance of Predacons, for instance.

Until now, everything was quiet.

Rattrap was sitting in another chair, challenging the computer to a game of digital Poker.

"Oh, curse that bloody computer," he ranted. "How come every time I challenge it to a game, I'm the loser?"

"To say it with the words of the great Optimus Prime, Rattrap..." his burly friend smirked. "It's destiny!"

The sabotage expert sighed in defeat and switched off the game simulator.

That's when the scanner suddenly started beeping. Both Maximals looked up from what they were doing and Rhinox went over to the main computer.

"Now what do we have here?" he mumbled. "Hmmmm? Four energy signatures... and they seem to be Stasis Pods."

Optimus Primal, the Maximals' leader, just entered the control room and overheard Rhinox' last statement. "How could they have appeared there without our scanners having detected them earlier?" he wondered.

"Why, indeed?" Rhinox murmured. "If they had fallen from orbit, we would have noticed them as soon as they entered the atmosphere. And if someone had brought them there, we would have noticed as well. Besides, the only ones who could do this would be the Predacons... and what use would it have for Megatron to put four Stasis Pods into our territory?"

"Yeah, old dino-butt would use any chance to corrupt any fallen Protoforms into Preds, that's for sure," Rattrap exclaimed.

"Well, whatever happened, we have to make sure the Predacons don't use them for their purposes. Rattrap, contact Dinobot and Airazor. They're the closest to that sector. I will go and join them. Rhinox, find out if the number of Stasis Pods in orbit has changed."

"I'm on it, Optimus!" Rhinox nodded and got to work. And while Optimus (unlike the other two, he was in Beast Mode) went to the escape hatch, Rattrap reached for the communicator.

"Rattrap to Dinobot! Yo, chopperface, do you read me?"

The annoyed voice of the former Predacon came out of the device: "What do you want now, vermin?"

"We found four stasis pods near your current position. Optimus is on his way. He wants you and Airazor to check it out."

Dinobot grumbled. "The day I'm gonna listen to one of your orders is the day the Pit freezes over!"

"Well, then, don't do it because I told you so... do it because Mega-jerk is gonna send his flunkies at the Stasis Pods if we don't hurry! So get your scaly butt in gear and get over there!"

Dinobot snarled through the communicator. "We'll talk about this later, vermin! Dinobot out!"

Rattrap disconnected. "Sheesh, chopperface is getting grumpier by the day..."

----

Some time later, Optimus Primal came descending from the skies, using the jets of his robot mode. Airazor and Dinobot were already waiting for him, in Beast Mode.

Just before he landed, Optimus called: "Beast Mode!" and transformed into his gorilla form.

He looked into the rocky cave where the scanner had found the Stasis Pods.

"Status?" he asked.

"The pods are intact," Airazor reported, her falcon head tilting as she spoke, indicating the bird-like behavior of her Beast Mode. "And no signs of any Predacon since we arrived here."

"I'm still saying this is a trap!" Dinobot growled. The brown-scaled Velociraptor looked into the cave suspiciously. "Maybe Megatron somehow covered the pods' presence from our scanners and is using them to lure us into a trap. I say we fire a few shots in there, to lure out any Predacons that might be hidden in there."

"Out of the question," Optimus stated. "The cave might not be stable, not to mention that we could hit the pods. Besides, if there are active Protoforms in there, Megatron would already have brought them to his base. Still, we should hurry and bring them back to the Axalon."

"I agree," Airazor nodded. "The fact that no Predacons have appeared yet doesn't mean that they won't come here."

"Very well, then let me go first," Dinobot insisted. "In case of an ambush, I can defend myself best against any close combatants."

Optimus sighed. Dinobots suspiciousness could be tedious at times.

"Very well, do it."

Dinobot nodded. "Dinobot - Maximize!"

After having turned back into his robot form, he pulled out his rotating blades and carefully stepped into the cave.

Shortly after, he called: "It looks like no one is around. Still, there might be hidden tunnels. I request that we thorough search the cavern walls for hidden entrances."

"Dinobot, we don't have time for this," Optimus shouted. "We have to get the Protoforms out of here, now!"

Airazor stepped up to the pods. "The cavern walls prevented the pods from scanning for any life forms the Protoforms could use as a Beast Mode, they are just too thick."

"We might have to transport them to the base like this," Optimus said in a worried voice. "I don't like it, but it seems to be the only option we have. Lucky thing Rhinox was able to construct a hovering carriage in case we would have to transport bigger objects across the plains."

"I'll go out and contact him," Dinobot volunteered. "The Energon within these walls prevents me to call him from within."

Optimus nodded and Dinobot turned back to his raptor form, walking out of the cave.

"This is strange..." Optimus said as he looked back at the Stasis Pods. "I don't remember that we had this many female Protoforms back on the Axalon... after all, not that many female Transformers exist at all."

"I know, we always have been a minority on Cybertron," Airazor smirked. "Maybe these pods aren't from the Axalon at all..."

"I wonder..." Optimus frowned. "Or someone changed the Protoforms' appearances..."

Dinobot came back in. "The vermin is sending the cat to bring the carriers," he hissed. "He will be here shortly. No Predacons are approaching us, and the number of Stasis Pods in orbit is still the same as before."

"Well, that's just prime..." the Maximal leader sighed.

----

Ami blinked. What happened? The last thing she remembered was that Setsuna, in her new form as 'Time Splitter', had reached for the Garnet Orb... and then there had been a bright flash.

Her vision was a bit blurry, and she could hear voices in the same room as her. Finally, she could see clearly again.

"Hey," a male, cheerful voice spoke up. "You're awake? How do you feel?"

Ami gasped in surprise and sat up. That creature in front of her... it looked similar to what Setsuna had turned into. But at the same time, completely different.

It was a male, with blue, metallic 'skin' visible on his face. His metal plating had a strange pattern on it. Almost like that of a cheetah...

"Hey, it's okay!" he told her. "You're safe now. We found your Stasis Pod outside. Can you get up?"

Ami shook her head. "I... I think so," she said, a bit woozy. She felt really strange... as if her body wouldn't quite respond as she wanted.

She stood up and looked around the weird, technological chamber. It looked right out of a scene in 'Star Wars'. She saw other humanoid robots standing nearby. Again, she wondered how she got here, and if those guys had to do anything with Setsuna's change.

"Where... where am I? And who are you?" she asked.

"I'm Cheetor!" the tall robot grinned. "The coolest cat around here. And these are my friends."

"You are in our base, the Axalon," a more bulky robot explained. He had hands similar to those of a monkey. "I am Optimus Primal, the leader of the Maximals. May I ask for your name?"

"M-maximals?" Ami wondered. "What's a Maximal?"

They looked at each other in confusion. "Oy, seems like the girl's circuits are all messed up," a slightly smaller robot with buck teeth said. "Hey, we all are Maximals, you and me, even chopperface here."

The tall, dark-faced robot next to him growled as if he was offended.

"Me? But I'm not a... I'm... I'm..."

Ami had just looked down at herself... and saw a pair of wite-furred paws. "W-what's going on? Why am I on four paws? What happened to me? Where are Usagi and the others?"

Rhinox leaned over to Optimus and whispered: "Seems like her memory data is a bit scrambled. I might have to take a look at it later."

"Maybe it's something similar that happened to Inferno," Airazor assumed. "He also seems to believe that he's a real fire ant."

"Hey, no worries! You can go back to normal in no time," Cheetor assured her. "Just say your name, and then 'Maximize'. Say, what's your name?"

"Ami..." the female arctic fox muttered. "My name is Ami."

"Ami?" Airazor asked. "An unusual name for a Maximal, but a pretty one!"

"Um, thank you..." Ami decided to give it a try. "Uh... Ami, Maximize!"

It felt weird, extremely weird. It was as if all her internal and external organs were rearranged, but she felt no pain. When the transformation was complete, she almost stumbled backwards, but was able to catch herself.

She then looked down at herself once again and saw... a humanoid robot.

'So, what happened to Setsuna must have happened to me as well,' she figured and remembered how Setsuna had transformed from a giant cockroach into her humanoid robot form.

"Welcome aboard, Ami," Optimus said and offered her his hand. Hesitantly, she accepted the handshake.

"Now we only have to wait until your friends wake up from hibernation," Rattrap joked.

"My friends?" Ami gasped. "They are here as well?"

----

Minako blinked. Then she winced.

"Ow, my head..." she groaned. "Feels like Makoto hit me with her biggest frying pan... again and again... and again... and again..."

"Will you stop that, Minako?" a cranky voice came from the other corner of the room. "I'm trying to wake up here..."

"Oops, sorry about that, Rei..." Minako replied as she stumbled out of the weird apparatus she had been placed in. "Why can't the floor stop shaaaking...?"

"Heck, what did I DO last night?" Rei muttered. "Wait a minute... What are you doing in my bedroom, Minako? Hey... This isn't my bedroom! Where am I?"

She let herself flop out of what she previously had believed to be her bed.

Then she found herself to be eye in eye with a pair of big eyes... in the middle of a furry face.

"WHAAAAAAAH!" Rei screamed and jumped back. "A GIANT CAT!"

"WHAAAAAAAH!" Minako screamed and jumped back as well. "A GIANT, TALKING RAVEN!"

The 'raven' blinked and took a closer look at the slightly oversized cat with the spotted fur. That voice... could it be...?

"Minako?"

"The raven knows my name!" Minako gasped, curling her furry body up into a ball. "Have I lost it or what?"

Rei blinked. "Raven?" she murmured and took a look at herself.

Black feathers, wings, yup, definitely a raven.

Well, crud!

Rei sighed. "Minako... it's me, Rei! Something very weird is going on here, I'm afraid..."

"So it's not a dream?" the spotted feline asked and peeked out from in-between her tail and forepaws.

"I'm afraid not," the shrine maiden turned black bird sighed. "Whatever Setsuna did to us back in that restaurant, it brought us here and somehow turned us into animals."

"Oh my god... What am I? What am I?"

Rei looked at her hysterical friend closely. "I'm no expert, but it seems like you are some kind of small cat of prey..."

"An ocelot," another voice spoke up. "And would you two please quiet down, my head is hurting."

The two former human girls looked around and almost had a heart attack when they saw a big, grey wolf lying in another corner of the room.

And the voice it used to speak...

"Mamoru?" Rei asked curiously.

"The very same," Mamoru nodded. "But don't ask me what's going on, I'm as clueless as you are."

"Well, I might have some ideas..." a new voice came from the door, which opened by sliding to the side.

The three animals looked at the white-furred fox that came padding into the cell, followed by a cheetah.

"Ami?" Minako guessed. The fox nodded.

Minako looked over to the cheetah. "I hate to ask, but... Makoto?"

"What?" the cheetah asked in surprise. "No!"

"Oh, my mistake," Minako said with a grin when she heard the masculine voice. "Haruka, then?"

"NO! My name is Cheetor!"

"He is one of the locals," Ami explained. "Well, sort of... He and his friends are stranded on this planet... Well, looks like we are as well."

"Planet?" Mamoru asked and stood up, still getting used to his four legs. "What planet?"

Cheetor shrugged as best as a four-legged animal could. "We would like to know that as well. We followed the Predacon ship through a warp hole and got thrown through space of time. The next thing we know, our ships shoot each other, and here we are, crashed on the surface of a mysterious world, not being able to leave."

"Oookay..." Minako said. "And we got here because..."

"I don't really know," Ami said. "His friends said they found us in these things over there." She gestured to the three capsules from which her three friends had risen. "They called them 'Stasis Pods'."

"I knew it felt kinda strange to be my bed," Rei proclaimed.

"My best guess is that Setsuna somehow went crazy after being turned into what we saw, and brought us here with her powers. Somehow, she also turned us into THIS."

"If you don't mind my asking," Mamoru intervened. "What exactly are 'Maximals' and 'Predacons'?"

'Hoo boy!' Cheetor sighed. 'This will take some time... either their memory circuits are even more scrambled than Rhinox assumed, or there might be the slight chance that their story isn't quite as far-fetched as it might sound...'

"Well, how about we all go over to big bot and discuss things with him? I'm sure if we all work together, we might find a solution."

"Big bot?" Rei asked curiously.

"He means their leader, Optimus Primal," Ami explained. "He figured it would be best to send me and one of them in first, so you wouldn't get quite a big shock."

"Well, the shock I got was nearly enough to scare me out of my pants," Minako grumbled. "If I had some on..."

"Well, how about we transform out of our Beast Mode first?" Cheetor suggested.

"What do you mean by THAT?" Rei asked, now very confused. The fact that animals were intelligent enough to live in what seems to be a highly technological base was puzzling enough.

"He means like THIS," Ami asked. "Ami, Maximize!" And she demonstrated by transforming into her robot form, which still looked like her, somewhat.

Rei blinked. "That was... nice."

"Um, the white fur on your front side emphasizes your... eyes," Minako said.

Ami grinned. "Thank you! Now, why don't you do it?"

"You want to tell us that we are not really animals, but robots that can turn into animals?" Mamoru wondered. "Well, this day is getting weirder and weirder..."

Ami shook her head. "You don't know half of it..."

----

Shortly afterward, Cheetor was leading the three Senshi and the reincarnated prince of Earth to the bridge. Every single one of them has managed to transform into their new robot modes. They still looked pretty similar to their human forms, even with synthetic hair. Minako even had her old hair bow.

The other Maximals had been waiting patiently.

Well, in most cases...

"What took you so long, cat?" Dinobot spat. "We don't have all day!"

"Hey, back off there, will ya?" Rattrap intervened. "Those guys are confused enough as they are, okay? They don't need you going all pesky on them."

Dinobot growled, before Optimus stepped between them. "All right, that's enough, you two! We don't want to give our guests the wrong ideas, right?"

"Heh..." Dinobot grunted. "I trust no one until they haven't proven themselves to be worthy of being on my side."

Rei frowned. 'Well isn't he the charming one. The others don't seem that bad, but I clearly can do without that guy.'

Optimus stepped in front of the group. The Senshi have decided to let Mamoru talk for them, as he would be their king in the future.

"Greetings!" Optimus said and exchanged a handshake with the only male member of their group. He couldn't help but notice the style in which his armor plates were arranged - they looked very similar to those of a medieval knight from Earth. "I am Optimus Primal. Welcome aboard the Axalon, although I am afraid we weren't expecting quite as much visitors as you. Still, I believe we have enough space for everyone, so feel free to stay as long as you like."

"Thank you," Mamoru replied. "I am Mamoru Chiba, and these are my friends Rei Hino and Minako Aino... and I believe you already met Ami."

"Nice to meet you all. Although I must say, your names are quite unusual for robots. Ami told us you never heard of Cybertron before... and the longer I'm thinking about it, the more I'm ready to believe it."

"No kidding!" Rattrap chuckled. "I mean, your Stasis Pods practically appeared out of thin air, not to mention that those we brought with us are still in orbit. Then you act all weird as if you never knew about your transformation abilities... which is what every Cybertronian is able to do."

"This might sound pretty strange, I'm sure," Rei said. "But actually, we are not robots. We're humans."

Everyone of the Axalon crew looked at her as if she had grown an additional wing.

"It's true," Rei insisted. "Well, maybe we are robots now, but we weren't before we came here."

"She's right," Ami nodded. "We fought... um, someone back on our home planet, and then she surrounded us with a bright flash, and the next thing I can remember is waking up in front of you."

"Humans..." Rhinox murmured. "Now that is interesting... very interesting indeed."

"Oh gimme a break here," Rattrap shouted. "Humans that turn into robots? Who ever heard of that!"

"This is ridiculous!" Dinobot growled. "I say they all lie. I wouldn't be surprised if they all were Predacon spies, sent here by Megatron."

"Hey, back off, scaly!" Minako snapped. "We don't know either how it happened, okay?"

"How did you find us anyway?" Mamoru asked. "And did you find our friends as well? Three other girls were with us when this happened."

"I'm sorry, we only found the four of you," Airazor spoke up. "And we found you inside of those four Stasis Pods, as Protoforms... not even provided with a Beast Mode as protection."

"Um... am I supposed to understand anything of that?" Minako asked carefully. "I only know that we never went through this stuff at school."

"Well, Transformers like us are very sensitive to a substance called 'Energon'," Rhinox explained. "We may use it for engines and weapons, but if the Energon around us is too highly concentrated, we might risk a stasis lock..."

"Meaning we would shut down until we get out of reach," Ami explained.

"Right. And to prevent this, we need to acquire the forms of the native creatures on this planet. This way, we are protected against the Energon fields."

"Yeah, and there's a massive amount of Energon out there," Rattrap nodded.

"Protoforms are those robots still in a Stasis Pod, without a proper Beast Mode," Optimus explained. "Like you have been when we found you. We had to take you to our base, as the scanners of your pods were influenced by the big amount of Energon in the cave we found you in. Back here, we simply took a few animal forms that were stored within our computer."

"I chose them," Cheetor stated proudly. "I just figured they would fit your appearance as a robot... and I even made sure to include a flyer in your group. I hope you like them."

"But if this is an alien planet, why are there animals from Earth living here?" Ami wondered. "Could this be Earth after all?"

"Not very likely," Optimus shook his head. "There has never been such a big amount of Energon on Earth, and besides, the moon up there doesn't really look like yours."

"That means you believe us?" Rei asked in surprise.

"Ah, we saw some weird stuff happening," Cheetor said.

"We may have some problems ourselves, but as long as we can work with each other I see no reason why we couldn't let you stay and help you find your friends... assuming they are on this planet as well."

"We thank you for your offer," Mamoru said. "And if there is any way in which we may help you, tell us."

"Well, first we should find out more about how you got changed like this," Rhinox said. "I already took a look at the Stasis Pods, and I have to say, something about them is different from the standard ones we are using. My scanners also pick up some strange energy readings that I have trouble to identify."

"Maybe we can work on that together," Ami suggested. "I don't know how, but I believe my Mercury Computer somehow merged with me while I was in that pod." She opened a small panel on her right arm and showed the others the usual controls of her computer.

"Wow..." Rei said in awe. "You turned into a walking computer, I can fly... I wonder what else happened to us."

"Well, I already know that there is at least one advantage coming from all this," Minako stated.

"And what would that be?" Airazor wondered.

The blonde robot grinned. "I won't have to go to the bathroom!"

Her friends would have sweatdropped... IF robots were able to sweat.

'Well, at least we have the chance to find out what happened to us,' Ami thought to herself. 'And we found allies who are searching for a way back home as well... I just hope Usagi and the others are all right.'

She sighed. 'I wonder what made Setsuna act like this... and what she is planning.'

----

Meanwhile, at the Predacon Base...

A tall, female Predacon with green hair stood in front of the feared Megatron's seat, guarded by his henchmen Scorponok and Waspinator. Behind her, a row of Stasis Pods was standing, on top of a long, hovering platform.

"Well, I don't know where you came from, but since you said you had an interesting offer for me and also brought these... nice gifts, I'm willing to let you speak."

Time Splitter smirked and gestured at the Stasis Pods. "Lord Megatron..."

A grin appeared on the Predacon's leader's face. "Lord Megatron, I like that. Yeees..."

"I present to you... the Predacon Senshi!"

With a hissing sound, the three Stasis Pods opened...


	3. Activation Code Confusion

The freshly re-programmed Transformers stepped out of their pods. Now, as Predacons, the previous Senshi would accept only Time Splitter as their leader.

The first one was a dromaeosaurid, a two-legged dinosaur with brown and green scales and wicked-looking claws on both of her feet. Similar looking to the Beast Mode of Dinobot, she was much sleeker than him.

"This one is called Thunderclaw... although she also answers to the name of Makoto. Her speed and physical power are unmatched amongst our little group. I thought she might be a good replacement for your old 'friend' Dinobot."

Megatron looked at the young warrior with interest, never once revealing how surprised he was that this Predacon women knew so much about him and his crew... even his former crew member, Dinobot.

"Interesting..." he finally said. "But how will she fare during a battle with firepower?"

Time Splitter looked at her charge, and Makoto nodded.

"Thunderclaw... Terrorize!" Her robot form was almost as tall as Megatron himself, but much, much sleeker. Terrorsaur lecherously leered at her bosom, which was as impressive as Blackarachnia's.

But for Megatron, good looks didn't mean much. He gestured towards Waspinator, and the green bug flitted over to where he and the other Predacons had prepared a small shooting range. Painted on the targets were pictures of Optimus Primal and Dinobot.

Makoto pulled out a rifle that looked like it had been her Beast Mode's tail and took aim. Then she pulled the trigger.

A bolt of electricity shot out of the rifle, hitting the image of Dinobot right in the middle.

Waspinator raised a sign that read '100 points'.

"Not too shabby, huh?" she smirked and put her rifle onto her back.

"Impressive, yes," Megatron nodded. "Now, what about your two comrades?"

Time Splitter went over to the next Predacon, which was very tiny in comparison with everyone else in the room. It was a spider, similar to Tarantulas, but much smaller. Her round body was covered with violet hair, and her eight legs were covered with the same-colored fuzz. Her eight eyes were exceptionally large for such a small body.

She was very cute, for a spider.

"What kind of spider is that?" Blackarachnia asked with a shiver. "I've never seen one that... cute before."

"A jumping spider..." Tarantulas muttered with distaste. He had never liked those species before. Jumping Spiders were hunting their prey down by themselves... he preferred to capture it within nets, to see it struggle.

"This is Hotaru... or, as she is also called... Nemesis!"

Megatron was taken aback. Was it a mere coincidence or did that roach-woman choose her follower's name in reference to the most famous of all Decepticon battleships?

"She is the youngest of us... but don't let that fool you! Her powers are extraordinary, although they haven't reached their peak yet."

She knelt down in front of the small, fuzzy spider. "Hotaru, please show him what you can do."

The young jumping spider smiled up at her. "Okay, Setsuna-mama! Nemesis, Terrorize!"

Her robot form was very similar to those of Blackarachnia and Tarantulas, but only as big as a human child. Her pretty face was framed by violet, synthetic hair, and her constant smile was unnerving for most of the Predacons.

She turned around to face the targets. "Would you please move out of the way, wasp-san?" she asked in the cutest voice she could bring up.

Waspinator was confused, but obeyed instantly. "Little spider-bot sure izzz polite," he buzzed to himself.

Hotaru then stretched her arms forward and raised the upper arms upwards, revealing two slots on the underside. They began at her elbows and went all the way up to her wrists.

The slots opened up and revealed a shimmering, violet energy beneath. Hotaru made a jerking motion with her arms, and a pair of round energy blades came flying out of the slots. When they hit the targets, they all got destroyed within an enormous, violet sphere of destruction.

Hotaru closed the slots and lowered her arms. Turning around to Megatron, she smiled and asked: "Was that enough for a demonstration?"

"An impressive display of power, especially for someone this young," Megatron nodded. "Yes... However, I'm curious, Time Splitter. Normally, all Cybertronian children that are born naturally are known to be emotionless. How do you explain this?"

Time Splitter smirked. "Easy enough to explain, sir! See, we are Senshi... originally protectors of certain planets. And our Senshi powers allow us to perform feats that would be impossible for normal Predacons... or Maximals, for that matter. And the Senshi powers are what allows little Nemesis to have a personality herself."

"I see, I see..." Megatron muttered, although he didn't quite understand half of what that woman was babbling. If their powers were that exceptional, he would have to keep them close to see if he would be able to use those powers for his own goals, yes...

"Very well... and the last one?"

Time Splitter grinned. "Now this one is a bit special. This is Usagi, now known as 'Moon Hunter'."

"Hunter?" Terrorsaur laughed out loud. "Oh please, she's a rabbit! How much of a hunter can she be?"

Indeed, Usagi's new Beast Form was that of a quite normal-looking - even if slightly oversized - white rabbit.

"You're mocking me?" she asked in an offended tone of voice. "I'm going to have you punished in the name of the moon... Moon Hunter, Terrorize!"

In a fluid motion, Usagi transformed, revealing a shimmering robot that looked like her parts were made of pure silver. Strands of silvery hair were cascading down from her head, forming the two pigtails with the meatballs.

And then... she fell over.

"Owie..." she muttered. "I still have to get used to this..."

She stood back up. Unlike the other former Senshi, the pattern on her body looked very similar to her Sailor Moon fuku. She also had a fake tiara on her forehead.

"Usagi, show them your boomerang skills, please!"

Usagi nodded with a smile. "Okee dokee!" She removed the tiara from her head, revealing that it had very sharp edges.

Waspinator, having put up a new set of targets, quickly moved out of the way as Usagi took aim.

Formerly, as Sailor Moon, she would have shouted her attack name out loud. Usagi always had been proud of her 'Moon Tiara Action'.

But Predacons don't reveal their location to their enemies... they just attack.

So Usagi shouted nothing when she twirled around, throwing her projectile at the targets. It spun around, creating a disc of deadly blades and humming energy, slicing the targets clearly in half.

And before the pieces fell down into the lava pit below, Usagi quickly drew a small item from her waist... something that looked like a cross between a pistol and her old Moon Rod.

She pulled the trigger and fired quick bursts of energy at the fallen target pieces, turning every single one of them into ashes.

"And on top of that, I can heal," she grinned, twirling around her little weapon like a cowboy would do with his revolver.

And almost dropped it down into the lava...

"A bit clumsy, but extraordinarily skilled in battle," Megatron nodded. "Good, Time Splitter... I understand you are offering me the service of your followers. But... what do you demand in return?"

"Nothing, at least not right away," she smirked. "I'm simply honored to assist the infamous Megatron to reach his goals."

"Charming, but not convincing. Before you and your... girls... will be welcome in my services, I have to know where you came from. Our ship crashed here by accident, we don't even know where this planet is. I don't believe that you just came here by mere coincidence yourself, no..."

"Well, you got me. I always knew the great Megatron wouldn't be satisfied with a mere promise of obedience. Very well, seems like I have to tell you. See, we are coming from the future."

"The future, you say?" Megatron stroked his chin with his fingers. "Well, so did we."

"Oh, I meant the future from your original time on," Time Splitter explained. "We are from a version of Earth, very far in the future... ruled by PREDACONS!"

Hearing that, Megatron decided that nothing coming from that woman would surprise him anymore.

"Predacons, you say?" he asked. "And here I am seeking merely control over Cybertron itself..."

"Our kingdom will be called 'Crystal Cybertron'... to honor your own kingdom."

"My... kingdom?" THAT caught Megatron's attention. "So, I will be triumphant in the end?"

"Most certainly, sir!" Setsuna said with a bow. "But to assure that really nothing will stand in your way, we have come from the future to assist you in your battle on this planet. When the future of your own realm on Cybertron is assured, our own kingdom will emerge - as a legacy of your own regime, but ruled by the family of the ancient Moon Kingdom!"

'Well, she certainly has a way with words...' Megatron thought to himself. 'What she just told me sounds too good to be true... Still, I have to take the chances. The firepower of that little Predacon alone will be enough to bring the Maximals down.'

"Very well, Time Splitter," the Predacon leader said. "I accept your demands. You and your followers are welcome to stay... as long as you listen to my orders and help me fight the Maximals."

"That is all we wish, sir!" Time Splitter said with a bow. The Senshi behind her bowed as well.

Inwardly, she smirked. 'That fool! Oh yes, Crystal Cybertron will be under the rule of us Predacons... but your puny little rule on Cybertron will be over as soon as the time of our glorious kingdom has come! Cybertron will only be one of the planets we are going to conquer, or destroy... and then, the universe will tremble before the power of Queen Moon Hunter and her right hand, Time Splitter!'

Megatron gave Terrorsaur and Waspinator instructions to show the new Predacons their quarters. When Nemesis was going to follow her 'Setsuna-mama', Megatron waved her back.

"Wait just a moment, little one... Your place will be in another part of the base. Tarantulas... you will share your quarters with her."

"WHAT?" the Tarantula screamed in surprise. "But... that's impossible! My lab..."

"I believe there is enough room in there. As a young Predacon with exceptional power, she will need guidance... Time Splitter makes a fine guardian, indeed, but... she will also need someone with a spider Beast Mode to teach her in the ways of battle. And I believe you are just the right robot for the job, Tarantulas."

Tarantulas' visuals darted back and forth between Megatron and the little spider. He didn't dare disobeying Megatron's orders directly, not now... but how was he going to work on his plans with that little girl looking over his shoulders?

Well, she was still young and inexperienced... maybe he could trick her somehow.

"As you command..." he sighed in defeat. "Come along, Nemesis!"

Hotaru smiled. "Sure, Tarantulas-papa!"

Tarantulas nearly fell off his hover pad.

Blackarachnia had to stop herself very hardly from not bursting out with laughter. This should be amusing to watch. And who knows, maybe that creep Tarantulas has a hidden, fatherly side deep within him?

She shook her head. Naaah... The Pit would freeze over before she was ready to believe something like that.

So she simply leaned back, waved towards the other two spiders and said in a mocking tone of voice: "Have fun!"

Tarantulas snarled and uttered something that sounded like 'witch'.

Hotaru, on the other hand, turned around and smiled cutely. "See you later, Blackarachnia-mama!"

Blackarachnia blinked. She didn't just hear that, did she?

----

Meanwhile, Terrorsaur has led Time Splitter to her own new quarters. As the leader of her own little group, she didn't have to share it with anyone.

After the disgruntled Pterodactyl had left, she sat down on a chair in the corner of the room and pulled out a small item.

It was a very tiny Silence Glaive.

"I will restrain from merging you with the artifact that's destined to be yours, Hotaru," she whispered. "At least as long as Megatron has no idea of your true potential... I will keep it for later. Later on, in the history of Crystal Cybertron, he will learn of your powers soon enough... as it will be you who destroys the original Cybertron!"

----

Usagi was hanging around in one of the many corridors of the Predacon's base. She was in Beast Mode.

Makoto came walking up to her, robot form. "Hey, what's up?"

"I'm practicing my hunting skills."

"Hunting?" Makoto frowned. "Um, I hate to say it, Usagi, but Terrorsaur was right in a way: How would you hunt? You're a rabbit!"

"Not just a rabbit," Usagi smirked. "Just watch!" Her long ears turned around. She had picked up a sound. "Now stand still... I can hear it..."

And then it came crawling out of one of the ventilation shafts... a fat, brown rat, almost as big as Usagi's head.

Usagi grinned. "Time for lunch!" she shouted and pounced on the hapless vermin.

A startled squeak, a few strangles and squishy noises later, nothing was left of the rodent, and Usagi was rubbing her tummy with her paw.

"Urp!" She burped loudly, revealing her elongated fangs. "That was tasty."

Makoto shivered. She could see that Usagi could pig out as before her transformation... but she never knew rabbits were carnivorous.

"Oh, didn't Setsuna tell you?" Usagi giggled. "I'm not just a rabbit... I'm what's called a Fuzor. I'm half-rabbit and half-wolverine, you know?"

That's when Megatron's booming voice came out of the speakers hanging at the wall: "Attention all Predacons! Assemble in the control room."

----

When all of the original Predacons, as well as the Predacon Senshi had arrived, Megatron explained what was up.

"Inferno has just returned from his scouting flight." He gestured over to his loyal ant soldier. "And he saw a small group of Maximals that have separated from their main base."

"And what's so important about this?" Tarantulas asked. "That's why you ordered us here? It not the first time they are doing this, you know?"

"If you would let me finish, please? Thank you. Well, Inferno has been able to recognize some of them... but the others were new. Inferno, why don't you tell them yourself?"

Inferno saluted. "Yes, my queen!"

Moon Hunter, Thunderclaw and Nemesis looked at each other and snorted.

"What's so amusing?" Megatron demanded to know.

"Oh, nothing..." Usagi giggled. "But... I just think it's funny when he calls you that. Teehee..."

And they giggled some more.

"Enough of this! Inferno, go on!"

"Yes, royalty! As I told you, I was on my scouting flight when I saw them near some trees. I could clearly identify the cheetah and the falcon. But I also saw three Maximals I've never seen before. I could see a wolf, a black bird and some sort of cat. I wanted to burn them in your name, but decided to contact you first."

"Good decision, Inferno! We need to gather some information about those new Maximals first. I find it alarming that they seem to have found three new Stasis Pods while we couldn't find a trace of them, yes. Well, at least our new ally provided us with new troops." He looked towards Time Splitter, who gave him a saucy smile.

"Listen up, Predacons!" Megatron said. "I want those newcomers to be separated from the others. Waspinator and Inferno will provide a distraction, while Tarantulas puts up a few traps that will isolate the new Maximals. Take Nemesis along with you, Tarantulas, she might be of help."

Tarantulas groaned while Hotaru smiled up at him.

"And what do you want us to do?" Moon Hunter asked. Thunderclaw was curious as well.

"Time Splitter, you and Moon Hunter will stay at the base. I don't want the Maximals to know of every new recruit. Thunderclaw, you and Scorponok will wait in case some other Maximals show up. You will take care of them."

"Affirmative!" Scorponok grunted.

Makoto shrugged. "Works for me."

"Good, everything clear? Move out! Inferno, Waspinator, attack them as soon as Tarantulas and Nemesis have put up their traps!"

"Wazzzpinator understands."

"Yes, my queen!"

More snorting and giggling.

"Are you still here??" Megatron yelled.

----

In the meantime, Cheetor and Airazor were showing their new friends the immediate area around the Axalon.

"I don't like this," Rei said nervously as she perched on Mamoru's back. "We should be searching for our friends."

"It's not like you could have done anything back in the base," Airazor pointed out. "Rhinox and Ami have to check out the pods we found you in some more. You heard Rhinox: When they are finished, they will be able to scan certain sectors for other pods."

"Yeah, and Optimus figured it would be best for you to get used to your new forms," Cheetor nodded. "And on top of that, this is a good chance for you to get to know our neighborhood."

"I think this is fun," Minako said from above as she tried climbing a tree. "This new body is so sleek, and those claws... I swear, I have never been able to climb trees that quickly before."

"I agree with Rei, but seeing that there isn't much that we could do..." Mamoru shrugged, then looked around. "This world sure is beautiful... untouched by civilization... clean, fresh air..."

"Yeah, I know what you mean," Rei nodded. "Usagi would have liked it as well... I wonder where she is right now."

"Tide will report," Minako said as she pulled herself up a branch.

Cheetor tilted his head. "Uh, what?"

"I guess she means 'Time will tell'," Airazor said with amusement.

Just then, their communicators beeped.

"Cheetor here!" the sleek cheetah spoke up.

"You better be careful out there," Optimus' voice proclaimed. "Our scanners have indicated two Predacon signals that are approaching your current position rapidly. I already informed Dinobot, he will try to reach you as fast as he can, but I suggest you come back to the base for now."

"What, you think we couldn't take on two puny Preds?" Cheetor asked cockily.

"Cheetor, our new friends still haven't gotten used to their new abilities. It's best to avoid enemy contact for now."

"All right, big bot," Cheetor said in a disappointed voice. "Okay, everyone! You heard him! Let's go back to the..."

A sudden explosion next to them interrupted his speech and shook them around. Minako yelped in surprise, fell off the tree and landed on all fours. She shook her head. "What... what happened?"

"They're here!" Airazor yelled. "They must have been faster than Optimus had predicted. Airazor, Maximize!"

"Cheetor, Maximize!" The two Maximals transformed into robot mode, just as Inferno and Waspinator came swooping down from the skies.

"Buuurn, Maximals, buuurn!" the crazy ant warrior laughed as he fired his flame cannon.

"Quick, you have to transform as well!" Airazor screamed before she returned fire.

"Okay, okay!" Rei screamed in a panic. "Rei, Maximize!"

Nothing happened. "Um, did I do it correctly?"

"Let me try it... Mamoru, Maximize!" Nothing happened. "What's going on? Why can't we transform?"

"Um, I believe that's my fault," a certain ocelot said sheepishly. "I kinda changed our activation codes over night..."

"Why in the world would you do that?" Cheetor asked as he dodged an incoming shot from Waspinator.

"Um, because... I thought it sounded kinda lame, when we just say our normal names... so I gave us new names that are used in the activation codes."

"Oh Minako..." Rei groaned. "Never mind that now, just tell us the new names so we can transform!"

"Yeah, sure... Um, I believe yours was 'Blackwing', Mamoru is 'Wolframator' and I am 'Ocelot'."

"Ocelot?" Rei wondered. "Just Ocelot?"

"Hey, it's not easy finding a cool sounding name for this Beast Mode," Minako pouted. "I was going to use 'Revolver Ocelot', but decided that name was far too long..."

Another explosive shot made the forget their prattle for now.

"I guess it's time we join the battle!" Mamoru shouted. "Wolframator, Maximize!"

"Blackwing, Maximize!"

"Ocelot, Maximize!"

----

Dinobot was running over the hills, approaching the position of his fellow Maximals. When he saw the sounds of gunfire, he knew he had to hurry.

"I hope these newbies aren't as pathetic in combat as they look like," the Velociraptor growled. "I guess it's up to me to bail them out..."

Suddenly, a brown and green figure jumped in front of him.

"You'll do nothing like that, 'cause I'm here to kick your butt."

"What the... another raptor?" Dinobot shouted in surprise.

"Look closely, I'm not a Velociraptor," Makoto replied. "I'm a Deinonychus."

"Whatever..." the former Predacon snarled. "I know that you are in my way, so leave before I turn you into scrap metal!"

"Sorry, no can do!" the other dinosaur smirked.

The raptor squinted his eyes. "Then prepare yourself... Predacon!"


	4. Battle Royal

Dinobot studied his opponent carefully, noting every single movement of her body, may it be the slow descend of the wicked claw on her feet, or the unconscious twitching of her tail.

He had never seen a fighter like her before in Megatron's crew, so he wondered where she came from. There was the slight chance that she was one of the 'friends' the newcomers had been talking about, but that didn't matter to him now. All he knew was that she was a Predacon, and that made her his enemy.

"Come on," she taunted. "What are you waiting for? You're not afraid of little ol' me, are you?"

Dinobot growled at her. He still had to find out how formidable she would be as a foe, but one thing was for sure: She was immature, and her constant mocking showed it.

A sudden clicking noise behind him almost made him turn his head in surprise. But he only slightly moved his eyes, as one of the basic rules in combat was: Never take your eyes off the enemy.

He had recognized the nature of the Predacon standing behind him anyway.

"No sudden move, Dinobot!" Scorponok told him. "Megatron will be pleased that I bring him the traitor."

Dinobot was thinking rapidly. One opponent behind him, the other one in front of him. He knew he would have to take a few chances... he couldn't watch them both at once.

It was to his genuine surprise when the female Deinonychus that was standing in front of him frowned and said: "Hey, shell head! Back off, will ya? I'm trying to fight here!"

"We have clearly overpowered him," Scorponok stated. "We have to bring him to Megatron... he will want to take care of the traitor himself."

"I can take care of him myself!" she claimed.

"I am second-in-command, Thunderclaw!" Scorponok shouted. "You have to obey me!"

With an angry snarl, she jumped over Dinobot's head in a swift motion, transformed into robot mode and grabbed Scorponok's head with her clawed hand.

She slammed him against the rock formation behind him. "Listen up, creep! When I tell you I want to fight, I'm going to fight! And don't think for a moment you can order me around. Time Splitter told me to listen to Megatron, and that's what I'm gonna do. But you... never... tell me... what to... do!" With every interval between her words, her hand was squeezing tighter around the humanoid scorpion's neck.

"Got that?" she snapped. Scorponok quickly nodded.

She opened her hand and let him fall to the ground with a loud clatter. She then turned around to face Dinobot with a smile. "Now, where were we?"

It was only at this point that Dinobot realized he could have attacked her easily while she was distracted.

He decided that attacking an opponent from behind would have been dishonorable. It was only the right thing to do. He would never admit to himself that he was simply too baffled to strike.

No, never.

"Dinobot, Maximize!"

Thunderclaw hesitated for a short instance when she took a good look at Dinobot's humanoid form. She never knew a robot could be that cute...

Well, the fanged mouth was a little weird, but when she imagined a human guy of his stature and musculature... yum yum!

She grinned. He may not look like her old Sempai, but in a world of robots and wild animals, he would do.

----

Meanwhile, a huge tarantula was scurrying through the bushes of the grassland, followed by a tiny, cute jumping spider with fuzzy, violet fur.

Nearby, the gunshots and explosions of the battle could be heard.

"Where are we going, Tarantulas-papa?" Nemesis asked.

"Don't call me that! And we're going to set up a trap."

She blinked. "How?"

"By spinning a web, of course!"

"Oh, could you show me how to do that?" She jumped up and down excitedly. "I've never been a spider before, you know?"

Tarantulas looked at her with irritation. "I thought you were a jumping spider... don't you prefer to pounce upon your prey?"

"Maybe, but I'm still anxious for learning more. Please, tell me what to do, I wanna help you!"

The male spider sighed. That little girl sure was a pest, but at least she was trying hardly. Maybe he could turn her into an effective little assassin...

"Oh well, just follow my lead, okay?" He crawled up a small tree, making sure that no one was seeing him.

Nemesis nodded with a smile and climbed upon another tree. "What do we do now?"

"Not so loud. You wanna blow our cover?"

"Oh, I'm sorry!" The little spider lowered her head and voice.

"Now just turn around that cute little abdomen of yours and start spinning."

Hotaru obeyed, but couldn't help but blush. Did he just compliment her rear? Or should she feel offended?

She would have to ask Setsuna-mama later on.

Shortly after, they were busy spinning the net.

"Say, Tarantulas-papa..."

"What?"

"Is Blackarachnia-mama your girlfriend?"

Tarantulas nearly fell off his tree.

----

"Stupid Preds," Minako grumbled. "Take this! And this! And this!"

And with every sentence, she fired one of her two energy pistols, which were shooting smaller versions of the energy projectiles Cheetor was busy bombarding the two Predacons with.

Mamoru had drawn the beam saber that was stored in a hidden hatch in his right leg and tried hitting the enemy projectiles back where they came from. But it wasn't quite working out as he had anticipated. Inferno was shooting fire projectiles, which simply disintegrated when he hit them. And as Waspinator was firing explosive shots, he didn't even dare hitting them and instead dodged them wildly.

Airazor and Rei had taken flight and tried drawing the Predacon's attentions to them.

Rei still had to get used to how she was being propelled through the air by a pair of jet engines and slightly miscalculated her flight path, which threw her directly in front of Inferno's gun. She looked up at his ugly face and gulped.

The ant warrior laughed insanely and shoved his weapon into her face. "Now, Maximal, you'll burn!"

Luckily, Minako chose just that moment to hit the flying ant with a double impact of gunshots, which made Inferno's head spin around wildly.

"Gyaaaahhrrrgh..." he groaned. "I'm getting dizzy..."

Rei used that chance to send him flying with a solid kick, then she pulled out her own weapon, which looked like an elongated revolver.

She grinned and took aim at the tailspinning Predacon. Then she fired multiple beams of hot, searing plasma out of her weapon.

"I could get used to this," she chuckled while firing continuously. "Not a bad replacement for my Senshi attacks." She giggled menacingly.

"Buuurn, Predacon, buuurn!" she imitated Inferno's voice.

"I think we are doing it," Cheetor said in-between shots. "We're driving them back."

"Well, what did you expect?" Minako grinned. "We just happen to kick ass!"

She wanted to send another barrage of energy pellets at the Predacons, and therefore, didn't pay attention to what happened on the ground.

That turned out to be a fatal mistake, as her left foot suddenly stepped into something sticky.

The ocelot girl looked down in confusion. "Huh?"

And then, the blue-shimmering strand of robot spider web yanked her off her feet, pulling her towards the bushes.

She only had time to yell "Whaaaah!" and then she vanished.

"Minako!" Mamoru shouted when he saw her head vanishing amongst the leaves. "Quick, something got her!"

"Leave it to me," Cheetor shouted and ran into the direction where the blonde Maximal had vanished.

"Wazzzpinator not think so," the green bug-robot buzzed and descended upon the running Cheetor like a kamikaze pilot.

"You're starting to annoy me..." Mamoru grumbled. He carefully watched as Waspinator flew at them.

And just before the wasp hit Cheetor's backside, Mamoru drew his beam saber, slicing cleanly through the Predacon's armored carapace and inner components.

Waspinator screeched in surprise as his legs and hips disconnected from his upper torso. In disbelief, he watched them fly away... and when he looked ahead, he saw that he was approaching the solid trunk of a tall tree.

"Oh, not again..." he whined, just before his upper body hit the tree with a force that did more to him than just denting his head.

Rei winced as she watched the hapless Predacon's crash. "Now that had to hurt."

"Ah, he had worse," Airazor shrugged.

----

Cheetor almost fell down when he found out where Minako had vanished: It was a deep shaft that someone had dug into the soft earth underneath the bushes...

"Whoever did this, his intention was to separate Minako from us," he realized. "Well, not if this cat has to say something about it."

And without hesitation, he slid down into the dark tunnel, following whatever had dragged the young ocelot away.

----

Meanwhile, Inferno was in trouble. With Waspinator gone, both Rei and Airazor could concentrate their fire on him.

Just as he was going to counterattack, his communicator beeped.

"We got the small cat," Tarantulas hissed. "Make sure to lure the flying one to the other trap."

Inferno saluted while in mid-air. "For the royalty!"

Rei laughed when she saw Inferno turn around and retreat. "See that, Airazor? The coward is running away! Well, I won't let him off the hook that easily."

"Rei, wait!" Airazor shouted. "Don't just fly after him, it might be a..."

But Rei, not having listened to her, was already on Inferno's trail.

"...trap!" Airazor finished her sentence weakly. "Oh, how I love working with teenagers..."

While flying over the plains, Inferno looked back every now and then, making sure Rei was flying after him.

He chuckled to himself. "The dumb bird doesn't suspect a thing..."

He then saw the small grove he was supposed to lure her to. He increased his speed.

Rei smiled when she saw her opponent fly down to the trees. "Now I got him," she cheered and followed him.

"Rei, fall back and let him go!" Airazor's voice suddenly spoke through her communicator. "Destroying him won't do you any good, they'll just take him to the repair tank."

"Then I'll just have to make sure there won't be anything left to repair," Rei said smugly. "Don't worry, I can take him on."

"Oh, for the love of... Rei, come back now! He's luring you into a trap."

"A trap?" Rei asked. "Don't be silly! If he'd do that, I surely would have noticed by..."

Just in mid-sentence, she was interrupted as she flew straight into something that had appeared in front of her without a warning. Rei winced, expecting a crash, but actually, the impact felt pretty soft.

"...now." Rei muttered, finishing her last sentence. "What... where the heck am I?"

It took her a while to realize that she was hanging upside down, in the middle of the biggest spider web she had ever seen. She tried yanking her arms and legs from the spider silk, but it was just too sticky.

A rustling in the leaves above her made her turn her head. She gasped when the biggest spider she had ever seen appeared above her.

"Hmmmmm, young and fresh..." Tarantulas cackled as he approached his helpless prey.

Rei gulped.

----

Minako groaned as she was dragged along the dark and damp tunnel, wincing every time her head collided with a rock.

"Dangit, let me go!" she yelled to whoever was pulling her. As no one replied, she decided she had enough. She pulled out one of her pistols and took aim. She couldn't see her enemy, so she instead aimed for the thread of silk her leg was attached to.

A flash of light and a loud bang later, and she was free. She rolled further a bit, and then she stumbled back to her feet, aiming her weapon into the darkness.

"Who is there?" she shouted. "Show yourself!"

"Please, put your weapon away, Minako-chan..." a soft voice exclaimed. "I don't want to hurt you..."

Minako froze. That voice... it sounded familiar. She still didn't see anything, so she activated her optic illuminators, a nifty piece of technology Rhinox had discovered as a part of her system this morning.

A soft humming noise, and beams of light were coming from her eyes, illuminating the tunnel.

All she could see was a dark shape with eight legs.

"You're awfully small for someone who was able to drag me all this way," she grumbled.

"Well, I'm a jumping spider," the tiny Predacon in front of her explained. "I'm much stronger than I look."

"Whatever! You better go back where you came from, or else I'll turn you into a SCRAPPED spider."

"Why are you so mean, Minako-chan?" the spider asked in a hurt voice. "I thought you were my friend..."

Minako was confused. "What do you mean? I've never met you before."

"Oh yes, you have!" The spider almost seemed to smile. "Here, let me show you... Nemesis, Terrorize!"

And after the small Predacon turned back into her robot form, she stepped forward into the light.

She smiled. "It's me... Hotaru!"

Minako let out a startled gasp.

"Hotaru?" Minako muttered in disbelief. "How did you...? Never mind. I guess you got turned into a robot spider the same way I got turned into a robot ocelot. But why... why are you a Predacon? And why did you drag me away like that?"

The little spider-bot smiled. "Setsuna-mama made me like this. Don't you think I look cute?"

Minako decided not to answer that question. "Why... Setsuna? She did that to us? But why?"

"Um, she said something about how we would have an easier time defending Earth against our enemies or something... You better ask her yourself. As for me, I don't really mind being like this. I've never felt better." She smiled. "Setsuna-mama even said that I would never get sick again. Isn't that great?"

"Hotaru-chan, listen... your new forms may have some advantages, but what Setsuna did was wrong. Don't you want to be human again? What if our friends and families see us like this? What about your father?"

"Oh, that's not the problem," Hotaru said. "Watch closely, Minako!"

She stood straight and said: "Human Mode!"

And with the whirring and clicking that accompanied every robot transformation, Hotaru's metallic skin got covered with replicated human skin and clothes, while her Beast Mode appendages retracted themselves into her body.

She spun around with a smile. "See? We all can do that. Didn't you find out by now? Neat, huh?"

"Hotaru... that is not the same as being human. That's just a disguise, nothing else. But what I really want to know is: Why are you on side? Why are you a Predacon?"

"Oh, they are not that bad. Tarantulas-papa is quite funny, actually. And he taught me how to spin a web. Blackarachnia-mama seems to like me almost as much as Tarantulas-papa. Waspinator is a funny guy, and he even called me polite. Inferno is funny too, he always calls Megatron his 'queen'." She giggled. "Scorponok, well, he's the shy one, I suppose. He's always acting somewhat stiff, but he hasn't been too rude either. Terrorsaur I don't like too much, I must admit."

"But they are the enemies of the Maximals. Why do you suppose they attack them all the time?"

Hotaru shrugged. "Maybe because there isn't someone else here on the planet? I don't like the fighting either, but Setsuna-mama told us she had a plan to end the fighting. Then it wouldn't matter anymore if we were Predacons or Maximals, right?"

"What do you mean, 'us'? Are the others with you as well?"

Hotaru nodded. "Makoto is a cool-looking dinosaur now, and Usagi is a cute lil' bunny... although a bunny with claws."

"And they are all Predacons..." Minako sighed. "Just great..."

"Minako-chan..." Nemesis turned back into her robot form. "Please come with us. Megatron wanted us to catch you and the other Senshi, but Setsuna-mama told me she would never allow him to harm us. She wants to explain everything to you, and then you would see why she has done all of this. Come with me... please?"

'Aaaarrrggh...' Minako thought. 'Curse the little kids and their puppy-dog-eyes...'

"Hotaru, I... I can't. I don't really like what Setsuna is doing, and she can't just force us to understand. I appreciate it that she didn't just blast off our heads and instead sent you to ask me, but that doesn't change anything. Besides, the Maximals helped us very much. Siding with Megatron would mean betraying them... and I don't want that."

"I'm sorry to hear that," Nemesis sighed. "Setsuna-mama already said that you might have already made that decision." She shrugged. "It's okay. It's your decision, after all."

"I'm glad to hear you say that, Hotaru-chan!" Minako smiled. Seems like being turned into a Predacon didn't mess with her morals too much. "Well, I'll be going back to my friends now... you sure you don't want to come? I would hate to fight you some day, Hota..." She backed off in surprise when the spider-bot pulled out a small weapon. "Hotaru, what... what are you doing?"

Nemesis smiled at her blonde friend sadly. "I'm sorry, Minako-chan... but this is only for your best."

And she pulled the trigger.

A tiny dart came shooting out of her gun, hitting Minako right in the middle of her chest. Minako felt her legs weaken and give in under her body's weight.

Her final thought was 'Cyber Venom...'

Then she lost consciousness.

----

"Gyyyaaaaaaagghh!"

Tarantulas screamed as Airazor's gunshot sent him flying high over the treetops of the forest, before he vanished in the distance.

"Are you okay?" Airazor asked as she landed next to the web in which Rei was trapped.

"Yeah, but that really was close... thanks! Um... could you help me, please?"

"Of course," Airazor replied before cutting through the net. "But keep in mind that you can't just charge at the enemy like that. We have to be cautious... Predacons can be tricky little bastards at times, especially Tarantulas. You might blame his Beast Mode, but I suppose he just chose it because it fit his already existing personality. I mean, it's not like all spiders are back-stabbing little lyers or something..."

"I think I get it," Rei sighed as she stepped down onto solid ground again. "Take care when dealing with Preds, got it!"

"Good!" Airazor smiled. "Now, let's make sure the others are fine. Mamoru has scrapped Waspinator, and Inferno may have fled... but who knows how many of them are still out there. Let's pick up the others and return to the base."

"All right," Rei nodded. She then smirked. "Hey, nice shot you gave that spider, by the way!"

Airazor smirked back. "Thanks. If you like, I can give you some shooting lessons. Not many Maximals can teach you how to aim for a target while airborne..."

"That would be great," Rei replied as the two transformed back into, um, 'Bird Mode' and flew back to where they left their friends.

----

Several miles away, a slightly charred tarantula landed in a small clearing, bouncing off the tree trunks on its way down.

A large, female black widow was already waiting for him. "I already figured you would come here... I calculated the flight path while Airazor was approaching you."

"You should know that I hate you very much, Blackarachnia..." the upside-down lying Tarantulas grumbled.

Blackarachnia chuckled as the tarantula got back on his feet. "I thought you might be interested to hear something interesting about that cockroach, something I picked up while she was in her chamber, talking to the bunny."

Tarantulas raised his eight non-existent eyebrows. "Spying on fellow Predacons again, she-spider?"

"Yes, and you wouldn't believe what I heard. You know, they are really..."

The rustling of some leaves made them jump in surprise. They relaxed visibly when Nemesis came crawling out of the thicket, Beast Mode.

"Kid, you can give a spider a heart attack, you know that?"

"Sorry about that, Blackarachnia-mama!" Nemesis apologized. Blackarachnia winced.

"Well, whatever..." Tarantulas grumbled. "Did you capture your prey?"

Of course, he didn't expect that she had actually managed to capture a Maximal. Why should a little hatchling succeed where he failed?

All the more was he surprised when he saw what the little spider was dragging after her with a thick thread of spider silk.

"By the pit..." he muttered as he crawled over to the limp form of Ocelot. "You actually caught her?"

Nemesis smiled proudly. "It was easy!"

"Well, we should report to Megatron, then," Blackarachnia suggested.

Nemesis nodded. "Yeah, okay!" The three spiders scurried away, pulling Minako after them. "Say, didn't you just talk about something?"

Tarantulas and Blackarachnia exchanged a nervous glance. "Uh, it was nothing."

As the spiders left, they never suspected that they were being watched by a pair of attentive, green eyes.

When they were gone, a white tiger came walking into the clearing.

"Now who did those spiders trap this time?" Tigatron muttered to himself. "And who is that little spider? I have never seen her before."

He made a decision. "I must report this to Optimus. Tigatron, Maximize!"

After transforming, he activated his communicator. "Tigatron to Optimus! I have an urgent report!"

----

Makoto grinned as she dodged Dinobot's sword swipes, pulling out two twin sickles that had been her foot claws in Beast Mode. But now they were two curved blades of steel.

"This is fun," she smugly said. "You know, we should go out for a date some time... you are actually cute for a robot whose mouth is filled with sharp teeth."

"Stop blabbing and fight!" Dinobot spat angrily. He couldn't grasp the weird thoughts of that Predacon. How could she think of such things as dates while fighting?

Besides, he would never be interested in something as irrational as an affair with a female robot... he was living for the glory of the battle!

Even though that dinosaur girl WAS cute...

He shook his head. Bad thoughts! Bad thoughts!

Those thoughts were interrupted when Thunderclaw lunged at him with one of her sickles, but he managed to block it with his rotating tail-blades.

The two weapons entangled with each other, each warrior was struggling to push past his/her opponent's defenses.

With a firm yank, Thunderclaw pulled her weapon free. "You should really consider the date, you know? We just have to meet on other conditions than on the battlefield... how does Sunday evening sound?"

"I'm... not... INTERESTED!" Dinobot screamed, slashing at her with his blade.

Scorponok was still standing at the sidelines, wondering if he should interfere or report this to Megatron.

But that stare the female dinosaur had given him was unsettling, somehow... he wanted to stay in one piece for the day.

Suddenly his communicator beeped. He answered.

"Megatron to Scorponok! The spiders reported that they have caught one of the new Maximals. I want you and Thunderclaw to come back to the base!"

Scorponok saluted with his pincers. "As you command, Megatron!"

He then shouted: "Orders from Megatron! We must return to the base!"

"Just... let me... finish him, okay?" Thunderclaw muttered as she exchanged a few strikes with Dinobot.

"Leave him! Megatron's orders!"

Makoto simply wanted to tell him off, when Time Splitter's voice spoke to her, on a private communication channel:

"Leave him be for now! You know we have important plans with our old team mates. I need you back here, as a support."

"Very well..." Thunderclaw grumbled. "But you owe me, okay?"

She sliced at Dinobot with both sickles at once, so he had to jump back. She smirked at him.

"Sorry, cutie... But I gotta go! See ya!"

And she pulled out her electro-gun to fire a shot at the surprised Dinobot.

He was thrown back, and the electricity running through his circuits was stunning him for a moment. And when he recovered and got back up to his feet, Scorponok and the female Predacon were gone.

"Well, too bad..." he grumbled. "Or rather, good riddance! She was very irritating..."

He put back his weapons and transformed into Beast Mode.

----

Rhinox rubbed his chin. "These Stasis Pods... they truly are intriguing. They are similar to the standard Maximal Pods, but have several modifications from the original."

"Such as?" Ami asked, feeding all the information into her computer.

"Well, whatever this part over there is, it builds up a strong energy field, once the lid is closed. I could easily guess that this could be used to alter a Cybertronian's mental circuits... such as overwriting the memory or moral circuits."

"Eh... you got that in clean, Cybertronian English, big boy?" Rattrap asked.

Rhinox and Optimus sighed.

"He means that these Stasis Pods could be used to alter your memories, or to act against everything you are standing for," Optimus explained.

"Whoa, wait a minute! You mean this thing could turn me into a Pred?"

"Rattrap, being a Predacon isn't much more than your own personal decision and the change of your activation code. But... with these pods, robots could actually be brainwashed into doing things they would never do."

"This is terrible," Ami gasped. "So I guess we were kinda lucky that we still have our old personalities, huh?"

"Very much so," Rhinox nodded. "But that's not all! Look over here... that tiny part was probably used to turn you and your friends into robots in the first place." He shook his head. "I've never seen a technology like this before... No scientific achievements of Maximals or Predacons should be able to do anything like this."

"Let me take a closer look at it..." the white fox-girl said, holding her palm over the strange device that was embedded within the Stasis Pod.

Her now internal Mercury Computer needed a few minutes to process the information, but when he was done, Ami would have surely paled... if she still had any pigments in her skin.

"This technology... it isn't Cybertronian, as you said..."

"Well, what is it, then?" Rattrap asked impatiently.

Ami gulped. "According to my computer, these tiny machines are based upon ancient technology from the... the Moon Kingdom!"

Silence.

"Eh, what's the Moon Kingdom?" Rattrap asked while scratching his head.

Ami was going to reply, when suddenly, Tigatron's voice reached their acoustic receivers.

"Tigatron to Optimus! I have an urgent report!"

"Who's that?" Ami whispered to Rhinox. "I haven't heard his voice before."

"That's Tigatron, another Maximal," Rhinox whispered back. "He prefers to roam freely, you know? That's why he isn't at the base too often."

"Speak, Tigatron!" Optimus replied.

"I saw Tarantulas and Blackarachnia scurrying through the forest, along with a small Predacon that also has a spider as her Beast Mode. And... they have captured a Maximal, a female I've never seen before."

"Oh no!" Ami gasped. "They must have gotten one of my friends!"

"What did the Maximal look like?" Optimus asked.

"Well, she had an ocelot as a Beast Mode and..."

"MINAKO!" Ami shouted. "Oh no, we have to help her!"

"Hello?" Tigatron spoke up. "Who is that with you, Optimus? I've never heard her before... I surely would have remembered such a sweet voice."

Ami blushed.

"Save the compliments for later, you old charmer," Optimus smirked. "She's one of our new allies, as is the Maximal the spiders have captured. I don't know who the third Predacon is, but try to free her before they reach their base, okay?"

"Understood. Tigatron out."

Once again, Rhinox rubbed his chin. "A small Predacon with a spider as Beast Mode... now who could that be?"

"Does it matter?" Ami asked. "We have to hurry! Tigatron might not be able to do it by himself. Optimus, you can fly... can't you take me over there?"

Optimus thought about it. "Well, I already carried Rattrap once, so..."

"Don't remind me..." Rattrap sighed. "I'm still getting airsick when I see you fly..."

"You'll have to turn into Beast Mode, though," Optimus added.

Ami nodded. "That's fine by me! Beast Mode!"

And she turned back to her four-legged, white-furred state.

"Contact Cheetor and the others to find out just what happened there," Optimus ordered as he and Ami were leaving the room. "We'll stay in contact."


	5. Minako, mistress of deception

"Ooooh, what hit me?" Minako muttered as she woke up. She shook her head. "I should really stop this bad habit of waking up in a place I don't know..."

That's when a hard bump in the forest ground hit her head.

"Ow! Hey, what the...?" She suddenly realized how she was dragged through the dirt.

"Hey! Be a bit more careful, okay? Or even better: Let me gooo!"

Tarantulas threw a glance backwards when he heard her voice. "Seems your 'friend' has woken up," he told Nemesis. "Can you make her shut up? I don't want her to attract unwanted attention of the Maximals..."

"I know what I would do," Blackarachnia muttered as she clicked her mandibles.

"Let me talk to her," Nemesis said as she scurried over to her friend, while the other two spiders continued to drag her along.

"Minako-chan! You're awake! That's great, how do you feel?"

"Terrible..." the ocelot-girl grumbled. "And it's all thanks to you, remember?"

"I'm terribly sorry, Minako-chan," the tiny spider said while she crawled alongside Minako. "But I had no time to convince you, you see? Don't worry, everything is going to be fine. Just wait until you speak to Setsuna-mama..."

Another bump in the road. "Hotaru-chan, could you please tell that eight-legged creep to be more careful?"

"Sorry if madam is dissatisfied with the transportation," Tarantulas mocked. "Maybe she would like to have a first-class-shuttle, lunch inclusive?"

"Yeah, with a big, juicy spider as the starter," Minako yelled. She struggled against her bonds for a while.

"Don't even try it, kitty," Blackarachnia sneered. "Cybertronian spider silk is robust enough to hold even a rampaging bull."

Minako ceased her struggling and gave her purple-furred friend a pleading look. "Please, Hotaru! You have to let me go! Don't tell me those are your new friends..."

Nemesis smiled. "They just had a bad day, that's all. You know that Haruka-papa always gets cranky when she doesn't get her beer, right? Well, it's similar with Tarantulas-papa..."

Minako looked at the tarantula as best as she could from her position. "He doesn't seem like the kind of guy who drinks beer..."

"No, but he gets cranky if he doesn't get a chance to torture his prey for a long time, so please try to understand him..."

Minako shivered. It was creepy, really! Hotaru was acting as sweet and considerate as usual... but at the same time, could not grasp the meaning of morals.

"Hotaru-chan... just in case you don't know, torturing someone is bad!"

"I know," Hotaru replied. "But can you really blame him for having such a hobby?"

"Oh yes, I can!"

Nemesis looked at her old friend with pity. "I'm sorry you feel that way, Minako-chan... Hopefully, Setsuna-mama will be able to convince you better than I..."

She crawled back to help her 'Tarantulas-papa' and 'Blackarachnia-mama' pulling their captive.

Minako frowned. Was it really just a coincidence that Hotaru was mentioning Setsuna that often?

'She has got something to do with this...' she thought. 'And I have to find out what it is...'

'Minako! Can you hear me?'

Minako blinked. Was she hearing voices now?

But that sounded like... "Ami?" she whispered.

'Don't talk out loud! Try speaking to me with your thoughts.'

Minako decided to give it a try. 'Like this?'

'Exactly! Somehow, everyone of us has her own little communication channel, which we can use to communicate in private. Rhinox discovered it when he checked my systems. No Predacon is able to listen to us this way.'

Well, that was good to know.

'Ami, I'm being kidnapped. Two spider Predacons are dragging me to their base and... Hotaru is with them.'

'What?'

'It's true! She has a spider beast mode as well, and... she is a Predacon.'

'Oh boy... now how did that happen?'

'I don't really know,' Minako replied. 'But I think Setsuna is somehow responsible for all of this. She is in league with the Predacon commander, and Hotaru said I would understand her better after I talked to Setsuna. Ami, something is really wrong with her. She just couldn't understand that kidnapping an old friend is not the right way to handle things. She said the Predacons were her friends. She actually SHOT me with a poison dart!'

'Sweet, little Hotaru? Oh, that sounds really serious... Don't you worry, Minako! We'll get you out of there in no time.'

'Wait a minute, Ami-chan... Say, can you track down my location?'

'Yes! But why?'

'Good! Listen, it seems like they don't want to scrap me... Setsuna wants to talk to me, so maybe I can find out just what she is up to. Afterwards, I can try to escape... How does that sound?'

'I... I don't know, Minako... aren't you taking a big risk?'

Minako smiled mentally. 'Hey, I've been in Senshi business for a longer time than any of you. I know what I'm doing, trust me! Just let Rhinox help you in case I'll run into some trouble. I bet he knows more about Predacon technology than we do.'

'Okay, if you insist...' Ami still didn't sound too convinced. 'But be very careful, okay?'

'Don't worry, ol' Minako has it under control! Please tell the others as well, okay? Oh, and one more thing, Ami...'

'Yes?'

'Um... did you already try to transform back into robot form since yesterday?'

'Well, I have been in robot form since yesterday. And as for transforming, I have only transformed once into Beast Mode, so Optimus can carry me...'

'Well, I made a tiny change to our Activation Codes...' the ocelot admitted. 'I chose new names for us, we have to use them to transform now.'

Ami sighed. 'Oh, Minako... Oh well, what's my name?'

'Chill Wind.'

Ami thought about it. 'Doesn't sound too bad... but Minako...'

'Yes?'

'Please try not to make any changes to our internal programming anymore, okay? Being a robot is already as weird as it is...'

'Okay, okay, I got it... See you later then!'

'Okay... and good luck!'

During the conversation, Minako didn't notice how a small, purple spider had tilted her head around with interest.

'Well, well...' Nemesis thought to herself. 'Setsuna-mama will be interested to hear this...'

----

The front door of the house opened.

A tall, blonde girl with short hair put down her suitcase. Behind her, the long-and-turquoise-haired girl closed the door and took off her coat.

"Hotaru! We're back!" Haruka shouted while she carried the suitcase into the bedroom.

No response.

Haruka looked out of the bedroom. "Huh? Now where can she be?"

Michiru smiled. "Haruka, you remember we left her at Rei's place, right?"

"Yeah, but only until Setsuna was finished with her work at the Time Gates... and I seriously doubt that she is still in there. After all, we've been away for a week."

"Well, maybe Hotaru liked it so much at the temple she decided to stay there until we come back home."

"But still, wouldn't Setsuna be back by now?"

Michiru sighed. "Well, let me call Rei's grandfather. I'm sure she's still there, safe and sound. Nothing to worry!"

----

Some time later, Michiru put down the phone. "That's strange... I called Rei's grandfather, Usagi's parents and Ami's mother, but none of them knew where the girls or Hotaru might be."

"Well, I called Mamoru's and Makoto's apartments, and they didn't answer," Haruka said as she put down her cell phone. "Should we try to contact Minako's parents next?"

Michiru sat down on a chair. "I don't know... something strange is going on. All of the girls are gone, including Hotaru and Setsuna, and no one knows where they might be."

"What about Luna or Artemis? Shouldn't we see if they are gone as well? Maybe they can tell us what's going on here."

"Well, Usagi's mother told me that..."

A slight tapping on the window made her stop in mid-sentence. "Oh, now what?" Haruka mumbled in annoyance, and they both looked at the window.

There, on their window sill, they could see the two Mau cats they had just been talking about. Luna was yelling something and frantically knocked at the window with her paw.

Michiru hurried to open the window, and the two cats jumped inside.

"Thank goodness you two are back!" Luna sighed. "Something very strange is going on... all of the other Senshi, as well as Tuxedo Mask, have vanished!"

"We already knew as much," Haruka nodded. "We tried calling them, but their families couldn't help us."

"Even Hotaru is gone?" Michiru asked in a hopeful voice.

Luna nodded sadly. "I'm sorry, Michiru..."

The Senshi of Neptune lowered her head. "Please tell us what happened..."

"Well, it all started with that emergency at the shopping mall..." Artemis started to explain...

----

"So they all went to investigate, but they never returned?" Haruka wondered.

"I'm afraid that's what happened," Artemis shrugged. "Heck, I always wished someone would free me from Minako's erratic moods, but not FOREVER!"

"Who could do this to my baby?" Michiru sobbed. "I mean, she's just a young girl... who could possibly do something horrible as kidnapping her?"

"I'm more wondering how the kidnappers were able to take on her destructive powers of Saturn..." Haruka muttered.

"We don't even know if someone has kidnapped them or not," Luna pointed out. "Still, that would be the most logical explanation."

"So whoever or whatever wrecked the shopping mall is most likely responsible for the disappearance of the girls," Haruka said. "Well, do we know who did it?"

"Regarding from the news, we only know that it was a monster resembling a giant insect," Artemis shrugged.

"You think it's... a remaining Youma from the Negaverse?" Michiru wondered.

"Possible!" Luna said. "Still, we can't say for sure. My advice would be you two investigate the 'site of crime' and search for any clues that might reveal to us the identity of the suspect."

"That won't be necessary," a calm voice spoke up. "We can tell you who that is."

Upon hearing the voice, the two Senshi and two cats looked at each other in surprise.

"Say... doesn't that voice sound familiar?" Luna murmured.

And then, a soft knocking came from the still open window. They all looked around and saw a tall, pink-haired teen standing outside. Also, a grey-furred cat was sitting on the window sill.

"Chibiusa!" Haruka said in surprise.

"Diana!" Luna said at the same time.

Her daughter raised her paw to wave in greeting. "Hi, Mom!" She was almost as big as her mother.

But Chibiusa was even more a sight to behold. Not having the stature of a small child anymore, she had the tall body of a beautiful, young woman.

She smirked. "May we come in? I believe there's much we have to explain to you."

Shortly after, the teenaged princess of the future and her advisor were sitting in the Outers'living room.

Luna blinked. "Say, Chibi... um... should we still tell you Chibiusa? I mean, you're not exactly too, um, 'chibi' anymore..."

"Let's stay with Chibiusa," the pink-haired girl smiled. "That's what you always called me, even your older selves back in Crystal Tokyo. And I guess I already know what you're going to ask me... You want to know if I can tell you what happened and why I am here, right?"

"Well, yes," Luna nodded, surprised at the girl's obvious maturity.

Chibiusa pulled out a small item and put in on the table for all to see. Everyone recognized it at once: It was the small key she had always used to arrive from the future.

"I used this to travel back in time as usual, but... I had to take it without Pluto's approval."

"You mean your mother doesn't know that you are here?" Michiru asked in surprise.

"She most probably does know, and only Pluto's advice will keep her from coming after me... or from sending her soldiers to capture me."

"Did you do something wrong?" Luna asked in wonder.

"It's not like that," the princess sighed. "See, Crystal Tokyo... it's not what it used to be anymore."

"What do you mean?"

"What Small Lady tries to tell you is that something that happened in the far past has altered history, so that Crystal Tokyo has turned into a place of evil."

Everyone gasped. "Of evil? But... but what about your mother? Or the Senshi?"

"My Mom and her Senshi... they are not what they used to be..." Chibiusa muttered. "See, they aren't the protectors of Earth anymore... they have become invaders! Invaders of other planets!"

"That can't be!" Luna gasped. "Crystal Tokyo was supposed to be an Utopia of eternal peace!"

"That is not all," Chibiusa added. "They aren't even humans anymore... they are living machines... robots!"

"WHAT??" Luna wasn't the only one to shriek.

"It's true," Diana nodded sadly. "It's as if the battle against the Black Moon family never happened... every human on Earth has been conversed... transformed into a robot... a Predacon!"

"What the heck is a Predacon?" Michiru muttered. She still couldn't believe what Chibiusa was telling them.

Diana sighed. "Maybe you should show them."

Chibiusa nodded sadly. "Yes, you might be right..." She stood up and walked in the middle of the room. "Everyone, this might be a bit of a shock for you all, but please, do not be alarmed!"

She stood straight and said: "Sincerity, Maximize!"

The two adult cats and older Senshi were ready to jump out of their skin when suddenly, Chibiusa's body parts rearranged themselves. Underneath her pink skin, a metallic body with robotic limbs got visible. Her hair was still the same, and they also could see parts of her Senshi uniform on it, like her tiara, or the heart crest on her chest. She also had a pair of folded, mechanical wings on her back, resembling those of a bat... or dragon. A dragon's muzzle was visible on her stomach, just below her heart symbol.

The robot girl looked at them with a serious expression. "See? This is what the change of history turned me into. I am the only one with memories of Crystal Tokyo, though. Everyone else only remembers... Crystal Cybertron, the kingdom of High Queen Moon Hunter... and the whole galaxy trembles in fear when hearing from our kingdom's name."

"B-but if history changed like you said... and the cause of the change happened before our own time... why do you remember? And why isn't our own time affected at all?"

"That's why we have been sent back in time to find out more about this incident," Chibiusa explained. "Crystal Cybertron was never meant to be, and there are a few alien life forms in space who know that. They are always intent on making sure that such changes never happen. And every now and then, they choose special agents to carry out their will. And I... I am their agent now."

She stretched out her hand, and a thin lance made of a sparkling material came shooting out of a hidden hatch in her hand's palm. She posed with it and proclaimed: "I am Sincerity, herald of the Vok! And I am here to hinder Time Splitter - as Sailor Pluto is now called - from creating a world of machinery that only exists to conquer and rule other planets."

"Pluto did all of this?" Haruka gaped. "Well, no wonder she hasn't come back home... But where is she now?"

"It's not 'where' but 'when'," Diana spoke up. "And we can easily use the key to travel back in time, to where she has taken Usagi and the others. But we decided to stop here first, because... we might need your help. Are you willing to help us? A few biological life forms could turn out to be useful in the upcoming battle..."

"What do you mean, 'biological life form'? Luna asked in an irritated voice. "You talk as if you aren't one..."

"Oh yes," Diana chuckled bashfully. "I forgot to mention that, did I? Well, I am a robot, too."

"You don't mean..." Artemis weakly said.

Diana grinned. "Topspeed, Maximize!"

And her body transformed into a robotic cat, complete with feathered wings on her back and two bird feet where her front paws were supposed to be.

"Surprise!" she chuckled. "I am what they call a 'Mini-Maximal', just as Chibiusa is a normal 'Maximal'."

"I thought you said she was a 'Predacon'..." Michiru muttered. "Oh, all of this is giving me a headache..."

'Sincerity' frowned. "I have been a Predacon... before the Vok contacted me and returned my memories to me. Back then, I was known as 'Doom Drake'. But they made me a Maximal, a robot that is similar to a Predacon, but with an entirely different code of moral. We Maximals try to undo whatever evil plans the Predacons might have."

"Okay... as long as we don't have to turn into robots as well..." Haruka groaned. "Well, where... or rather, WHEN is it that we can meet the others?"

"Back in prehistoric times," Sincerity explained. "When two groups of Maximals and Predacons have arrived on Earth, completely by accident. Time Splitter - Setsuna - somehow has turned the other Senshi into Predacons and Maximals, and have been fighting each other ever since."

"But if her goal is this 'Crystal Cybertron', why would she turn some of them into Maximals?" Luna wondered.

"That's one of the things we have to find out," Diana, or rather 'Topspeed' explained. "But if Setsuna was the first one that was turned into a robot, the most urgent question is: How did it happen? Who turned Setsuna into Time Splitter?"

----

Nemesis frowned when Tarantulas threw their captive in front of Megatrons floating platform.

"Tarantulas-papa, be a bit more careful with my friend," she said.

"Ah, she'll live..." Blackarachnia sneered.

Minako threw the spiders a dark look, before suddenly, a towering figure was looming above her.

She looked up and into Megatron's face. "Uh, hi? Um, how's the weather up there?"

Megatron gave her a wry grin. "Indeed, very amusing... So, you are one of those who have joined the Maximals, I presume? What is your name?"

Minako slowly stood up. "Um, it is... Ocelot!"

"What kind of name is that?" Terrorsaur sweatdropped.

Waspinator (yes, they did put him into the repair chamber in the meantime) cocked his head and looked at Terrorsaurs head.

"What's the matter with you?" Terrorsaur asked in an irritated voice.

"How you do that?"

"How do I do what?"

"Strange sweatdrop-thing! Wazzzpinator always thought robots cannot sweat."

"You get used to it, trust me!" Minako explained.

"I'd like to get back on topic, yes," Megatron said. "Where did you and your friends come from?"

"Um... we fell down from the sky?"

"I don't believe that, no! The number of Stasis Pods in orbit is still the same as before you appeared. Try again, but know that my patience is wearing thin."

"Um, okay..." Minako bit her synthetic lip nervously. Now what was she going to say?

Suddenly, another floating platform came into the control room. "I can answer that question."

Minako looked over to the two Predacons that were standing on top of the platform.

'Setsuna?' she thought. 'Usagi?'

"Ah, Time Splitter!" Megatron said. "I figured you would know about those newcomers... after all, they appeared right after you came to this base for the first time, right? Let me guess... they are from the future as well?"

Time Splitter nodded. "Indeed, they are! I never figured they would be able to follow me like this, but it seems I was wrong."

Minako looked at her in confusion. What was she talking about?

Time Splitter looked at her and gave her a faint wink. 'Don't worry,' Setsunas voice echoed through her head. 'I'll make sure he won't harm you in any way... just play along, okay?'

'Um... okay,' Minako replied. 'But you better give me a good explanation as soon as we are by ourselves!'

'Of course!'

"Well, I'm waiting," Megatron said impatiently.

"Um, well... she is right, we are, um... from the future and we, well... we followed her because she, uh... she's a wanted criminal on thirty different planets... an intergalactic terrorist and... oh yes, she also collected way too many parking tickets."

Megatron looked at her closely. His face approached her until it was only a finger's breadth apart from her face.

Minako smirked nervously.

Megatron then looked sideways at Time Splitter. "Parking Tickets?" he asked.

The cockroach robot grinned sheepishly. "Well, as they say, a villain has to start from scratch, right?"

Megatron shook his head as he sat back in his seat. "I don't really know what to believe anymore... but I do know that any Maximal on Optimus Primal's side is my enemy! So lock her away for now, maybe we can convince her to join our side later on. If not..." He shrugged. "Well, I always wanted to test how long a Maximal would be able to stand the heat of a lava pit..."

Minako gulped. Things didn't look too good...

"I'll leave her in your hands for now, Time Splitter, as promised... but know that everything that happens to her will need my approval first, understood?"

Time Splitter smirked. "Of course, sir! Moon Hunter, go and fetch the prisoner! We'll take her to her cell!"

Moon Hunter smiled and saluted. "Okee dokee!"

She jumped over to the platform with Minako and the spiders, nearly fell over and smiled at her former fellow Senshi. "Hi there, 'Ocelot'!" She gave Minako a wink. "Please come with me or I have to do very bad stuff to you." She winked again.

Blackarachnia frowned. "What kind of stuff are we talking about?"

"Um, you know, stuff! Evil stuff! Things she won't like, you know?"

The black widow grinned. "I can imagine quite a few things she wouldn't like..."

"Well, leave it to me, then!" The bouncy bunny grabbed Minako's wrist. "You coming?"

Minako groaned. 'I really hope for your sake that you are just playacting, Usagi!' she thought.

'Well then, don't mess up my act and play along already!'

She giggled. "Sometimes, those Maximals just need the proper motivation, right?" She pulled out her small pistol, which she had dubbed the 'Moon Blaster' and held it at Minako's temple. "All right, Maximal, get going, or else I'm gonna blast your circuits all over the room!"

Minako quickly obeyed, although she had to worry. 'Either Usagi is taking all of this way too serious... or I'm in really deep shit!'

Nemesis blushed. 'Minako-chan!! Don't think such naughty words!'

----

"She did WHAT?" Optimus asked in surprise.

"She said she wanted to be caught, so she could speak to an old friend of ours who apparently is on the Predacon's side..." Ami sighed, her white-furred muzzle drooping downwards. "I don't like it either, but..."

"It's insane!" Dinobot snarled. "Cheetor has often tried my patience, but this cat is even more out of her mind than him!"

They were all in Beast Mode, sitting or standing together in the small forest in which Airazor had previously freed Rei from the web trap.

"Hey, be careful what you say about my friend, okay?" Rei cawed from her perch on a branch above his head. "Or I'll give you a good pecking!"

"Calm down, Rei!" Airazor said.

"I hate to say it, but Dinobot is right with this one," Optimus said. "Minako was way too reckless when she decided to let herself captured. But we might still be able to rescue her. Cheetor and Tigatron have pursued them to the Predacon base. Cheetor will try to sneak in and bail her out, while Tigatron will cause a distraction."

"All by himself, against the Predacons?" Dinobot asked. "Well, he has been a good soldier..." He put his claw to his chest, as if to salute Tigatron's death.

Airazor shook her head. "We will need to back him up, Optimus," she said. "It would be no problem for you and me to get over there in a few minutes and help him."

"Don't forget about me," Rei intervened. "I promise I won't do anything as reckless as before."

Optimus looked at the eager raven for a while, then nodded.

"And I can come too," Ami said. "You can carry me like you did earlier. Maybe I can even help Cheetor... my body is much smaller than his."

"I know Ocelot is your friend, but we can't go all. Rhinox and Rattrap will need some assistance guarding the Axalon, in case the Predacons attack."

"But Mamoru is much more skilled in combat than me. I can use my computer to detect any traps that might be waiting for Cheetor and me... please?"

Optimus sighed. 'I hate working with teenagers...' he mentally grumbled. "Fine, okay! Dinobot, you and Wolframator..."

"Can't we change my code somehow?" Mamoru asked in annoyance.

"Maybe later, I want you two to return to the base. The rest of you, transform and get ready to fly! Optimus Primal, Maximize!"

"Airazor, Maximize!"

"Blackwing, Maximize!"

Optimus offered Ami his arm. "Come, climb aboard!"

"Um, okay," the arctic fox said hesitantly as she climbed on his back. "But try to fly a bit more smoothly this time, okay?"


	6. Portable Space Portals are neat!

Megatron watched as Time Splitter, Nemesis and Moon Hunter left the room, together with their prisoner.

"Whatever are those females plotting?" he murmured while stroking his chin. "While I love the idea of finally defeating Optimus Primal and his Maximals, I'm not exactly thrilled by rhe idea of letting a bunch of giddy Predacon teenagers mess around with myself..."

Scorponok looked at his commander in surprise. "So you... don't believe their story?"

"Of course I don't, you fool!" Megatron shouted, slamming his fist down on the armrest of his chair. "Who has ever heard of a Predacon collecting parking tickets?"

Waspinator scratched his head in confusion. "Wazzzpinator not understandzzz... why would roach-bot be lying if little cat-bot said the same? She izzz Maximal, is she not?"

"That's what I'm beginning to wonder..." Megatron murmured. "Both of them are hiding something from me, I already know as much... but what exactly it is, I want to find out, yeeesss..."

He turned his seat around and gestured at the only female spider in the room. "Blackarachnia! I want you to spy on them... I know you have a... knack for that kind of activity, as they say. Listen to their conversation and try to find out just what they are up to. I don't think I want the help of someone who only helps me because she wants to usurp my place as the leader... or the rightful ruler of Cybertron! Now, hurry and go!"

"Yes, sir..." Blackarachnia said with a surprising amount of sudden loyalty.

"But only because I am as curious about their objectives as you are..." she muttered to herself just as she was leaving the room.

----

"Now what is going on here?" Minako asked as she was being lead through the ship, her hands still being bound by Cybertronian spider silk, and with the muzzle of Moon Hunter's weapon aimed at her head. "We are by ourselves, don't you think you can drop this charade now and tell me what's going on?"

"We are making the demands here, cat!" Moon Hunter snapped and aggressively shoved her gun closer to the other blonde's head. "Now keep going!"

"We will have enough time to chat once you're sitting in a cell," Time Splitter added.

'Keep acting, Minako,' the cockroach robot then said on the Senshi's private channel. 'They still might be watching us.'

'Yeah,' Moon Hunter said. 'Besides, this is fun... I always wanted to play the role of a brutal villain.'

'Fine, but do I have to be the victim?' Minako replied grumpily.

When they reached the prison wing, Moon Hunter shoved Minako into a cell and activated the energy bars, which were hindering any escape.

"Okay, and what now?" Minako sighed.

Time Splitter smiled. "Now we wait for the last guest to arrive..."

----

Blackarachnia, in Beast Mode, was stealthily crawling along the corridor's ceiling, through the door of the cell block and into a dark corner below the room's ceiling, where she listened to the conversation.

'The last guest...?' she wondered. 'Who could she mean?'

She shook her head when the tall form of Thunderclaw entered the room. 'Of course... the conspiracy wouldn't be complete with the last member of their group...'

----

"Makoto?" Minako asked in surprise. "You are here as well?"

"Spare me the pleasantries, Maximal!" Thunderclaw snapped, although she gave her old friend a faint smirk. "Those won't save your hide!"

"Now, let's talk about why we are here..." Time Splitter grinned, as she walked closer to the energy bars.

'Keep on talking, Minako-chan,' her 'mental' voice said with amusement. 'We don't want them to know what we are REALLY talking about. So... what do you want to know first?'

But out loud, she said: "How were you able to follow us into the past?"

Minako, totally taken aback by this sudden game of deception, strained her head to give back an appropriate reply that would make sense, while at the same time, asking Setsuna what she really wanted to know.

"Um, we... we found one of your time travel thingies within your locker at the academy."

'Was that good?' she mentally asked. 'And what I really want to know is: Why are you doing this? Why are you on Megatron's side... or at least, why are you pretending you are? And why are you playing along, guys? And why...?"

"You really think I'm that stupid? I would never leave something important like that in my old locker!" Time Splitter shouted, while at the same time, she mentally added: 'Whoa, slow down there, Minako! Everything we did was for a reason. We are doing this because we are trying to ensure our princess' future as Earth's queen.'

"Uh, you are right, we didn't find it in your locker... we found it in the bag you left at the cafeteria!" 'Okay, if you are doing this for Crystal Tokyo, why have you turned into a robot? And how did we turn into robots ourselves? Did you force us into those pods?'

"Time Splitter, do we really have to waste our time with this scum?" Thunderclaw growled. She pulled out her weapon and aimed it at 'Ocelots' head. "I say we turn her into scrap so she can't tell her friends back in the future we are here!"

'Mina-chan, you should calm down for a while! Do you really think Setsuna would do anything to us without asking first? It's true, she didn't ask you, Ami, Rei or Mamoru... but only because she didn't have enough time.'

"Thunderclaw, please don't be so aggressive..." Nemesis said aloud. "You are frightening poor Ocelot-chan."

She added nothing on the private Senshi channel.

'B-be careful where you point that thing, Makoto...' Minako winced. "Um, d-don't do anything too rash... We can find a solution. I'm sure the judge will take a few years off your sentence if you let me go now and turn yourselves over..."

'But why, Setsuna? Why robots? Don't you think our Senshi powers would be enough to defend our future queen?'

"Oh, you poor fool... you think this is just because we blew up the president's car?" Moon Hunter snickered. "No, we have a much bigger goal in mind than just becoming the rulers of Cybertron... The judge would never sympathize with us, would he find out what we are planning..."

'Oh, Minako, that's actually pretty easy: As robots, we have more power. The more power we have, the more easily we can defeat our enemies. And as long as we can still disguise ourselves as humans, we don't mind the fact that energon runs through our circuits instead of blood that runs through our veins...'

"Wh-what are you planning, then...?" Minako muttered, almost too shocked to utter a clear sentence. 'B-but why would you need more power...?'

Moon Hunter laughed. "It's the most ingenious plan ever! No sentence will be severe enough as a punishment for what we have planned... and there's nothing you or any Maximal can do to stop us... for we are going to... WRAP UP ALL OF CYBERTRON... WITH TOILET PAPER! MWAHAHAHAHAHAHAAAAAAHH..."

Minako didn't even hear the ridiculous statement which her former princess was saying out loud, as all of her mind was now focused on what she said next:

'Well, every queen needs a big amount of power when she plans to take over other planets, right?'

----

Still hidden in her shadowy corner, Blackarachnia had listened intently to every single word that was being exchanged by the five other female robots in the room. She had frowned a bit when she heard Ocelot say something about a locker, but she got much more attentive when Moon Hunter started to talk about their TRUE plans...

...and she nearly fell off the ceiling in shock when she heard the rabbit girl's last, absolutely absurd comment. What the HECK was wrong with those girls?

'Well, crud!' she thought to herself. 'Now Megatron might not even believe me anymore... especially not IF I'm going to tell him the truth...'

----

Blackarachnia decided she had heard enough. Carefully, so she wouldn't be spotted by Time Splitter and her quasi co-conspirators, she scurried along the ceiling of the room and vanished into the dark corridor.

Time Splitter lifted an eyebrow, then she nodded. "Yes, she's gone now! Now we can talk freely. Now, where were we...? Ah yes, Minako was just about to have a nervous breakdown."

"I c-can't believe you are seriously considering what you just said..." the ocelot-girl murmured. "Ruling over Crystal Tokyo is one thing, and I would have gladly helped with that when the time arrives... but conquering other planets?" She shook her head. "No, that's too much!"

"Aw, why not, 'Ocelot-chan'?" Moon Hunter smiled, addressing Minako with her new title for the first time. "It'll be fun, you'll see!"

"Yeah, think of all the bad guys whose asses we're going to kick!" Thunderclaw grinned.

Minako looked at her old friends. "Bad guys? You mean, people whose planets you are going to attack?"

"Well, duh!" Thunderclaw grinned. "Everyone who will oppose our dear queen is a bad guy, naturally... It's not that different from back when we first battled the Negaverse, right? Only that they attacked us first... but hey, what's the difference?"

"I can't believe it..." Minako said in a distant voice. "You guys changed so much..."

With an accusing look, she stared at Time Splitter. "Back when we fought you, they were still themselves... you brainwashed them, did you?"

"Ah, but we're not brainwashed, my dear friend!" Moon Hunter smiled, crouching down in front of Minakos cage. "Time Splitter merely helped us see the truth. I know that sounds cliche, but... once you join us, everything will look much better, trust me!"

"How much I would like to do that, Usagi..." Minako whispered and took a step back.

Moon Hunter sighed. "Oh well, it was worth a try... Well, looks like we just have to change you into a Predacon."

"What?" Minako asked. "You can't do that!"

"Don't worry!" Time Splitter smiled as she came closer. "It won't hurt. And as soon as you are one of us, you will realize how much better the world we have envisioned will be... Crystal Cybertron!"

Nemesis smiled as she waved. "See you on the 'other side', Minako-chan!"

Minako felt shivers crawling down her metal spine. Even Hotaru-chan... even that sweet little girl was convinced that what they did was right. And she was acting all casually about it...

Time Splitter reached out with her hand, to deactivate the barrier of energy bars that separated her from the blonde Maximal, but then she turned around her head and frowned. "Aw, nuts! Why now?"

Thunderclaw and Nemesis instinctively took a step back as the towering form of Megatron entered the cell. He threw a short glance to the imprisoned Minako and then turned towards Time Splitter.

"Well, how is it going? Did you offer her to join our side?"

Time Splitter sighed. "Yes, I did... but sadly, she rejected. But don't worry, sir! I have a fool-proof method to 'convince' her."

"That won't be necessary," Megatron said calmly. "I have no need for anyone who doesn't join me willingly. If she insists on staying a Maximal... we have no further use for her!"

"Wh-what?" Moon Hunter asked in surprise. She certainly didn't expect that.

Megatron faced Minakon. "Well then... Ocelot! I ask you one final time: Are you willing to betray Optimus Primal and your Maximal friends and join me as a Predacon?"

Minako was confused, but she shook her head. "No, of course not!"

Megatron shrugged. "Your loss..." He turned around and looked at Nemesis sternly. "Destroy her!"

Nemesis was taken aback. "What??"

"You heard me!" Megatron grumbled darkly. "Either she joins us or she will be destroyed. She doesn't want to join, so there's no reason why we should allow her to live. Now hurry and destroy her!"

"B-but... but I..." Nemesis looked from Megatron to Minako in confusion. Pleadingly, she looked at Time Splitter, who decided to intervene.

"One moment, sir..." she said. "Isn't she much more valuable as an ally? We could always use some troops to battle the Maximals..."

"Do not defy my orders!" Megatron said coldly. "See this as a chance to prove that your loyalty lies with me! I have no need for anyone who believes he can make decisions for me, no! So Nemesis, destroy her already!"

"But... but I can't..." Nemesis whined.

"NOW!" Megatron thundered.

Nemesis winced under his booming voice and took another step closer to Minako's cell. "O-okay... I'll try..."

"Don't try! Do it!" Megatron shouted.

She winced again and raised her arms to fire her deadly energy blades, but everyone could see how she struggled against it.

'Curse that unpredictable, paranoid Megatron!' Time Splitter thought. 'I had not intended to make Nemesis kill one of her former friends... and besides, my plan always was to bring all Senshi to join my queen's side... Darn it, why wasn't I able to foresee this turn of events?'

Nemesis winced as she took aim. Her arms were shaking. "Mi... Minako-chan, I'm... I'm sorry..."

Minako looked at the small, purple haired robot girl in astonishment. "Hotaru..." she murmured. Was there still something of the real Hotaru hidden within her metal frame?

"I'm getting impatient, yes..." Megatron grumbled.

Nemesis whined as she closed her eyes...

"Listen, I'll be counting to five," Megatron said. "If by that time, the Maximal is not scrap, I'll destroy both her AND you, Nemesis!"

Nemesis shivered. Even though her mind told her she was a Predacon, and as such shouldn't like Maximals, she was still Hotaru.

And Hotaru couldn't bring herself to hate anyone without a justified reason. Especially not someone who who had been (or maybe still is) her friend.

For those reasons, she slowly started to dislike (dislike, not hate) Megatron a bit.

"One... two..."

----

"Okay, we're all here," Optimus Primal said as he and his companions were just outside of the Predacon base, hidden behind several rocks. "Ami, have you found an entrance you and Cheetor could take?"

"Um, actually, yes... There's an air shaft not too far from here we could crawl through in our Beast Modes..."

"Why would they need air shafts?" Rei wondered. "We are robots, we don't really breath, do we?"

"Hey, but we still smell," Cheetor pointed out. "And without any ventilation, a grounded spaceship is gonna get pretty smelly."

"I believe we have more important things to do than discuss the olfactory sensors of Maximals and Predacons," Tigatron spoke up.

"He's right," Airazor nodded. "If we want to attack the Predacon base to cause a distraction, we have to do it now."

I don't think that will be necessary," a voice suddenly spoke up.

Optimus turned around and found himself confronted with a pink-haired robot girl. He was taken aback. "Who are you?"

She smiled. "I am Sincerity. Nice to meet you!" She looked at the two present Senshi. "Rei, Ami, please keep them from doing something stupid for a moment, while I go in there and get Minako out, okay?"

She pressed a button on her wrist, and a shimmering blue circle appeared in mid-air. She turned around and smiled. "It won't take long!"

She then walked through the circle, and it vanished, along with her.

Optimus, Cheetor, Airazor and Tigatron stared and blinked.

"What the heck was that?" Cheetor asked.

Ami and Rei exchanged a look. "Chibiusa?" Ami asked with disbelief.

----

"Three... four..."

Nemesis winced.

A sudden flash of light took her by surprise, and she stumbled back against the wall.

Within the containment cell of Minako, a circle of light had appeared. A pink-haired Maximal girl that was looking eerily familiar to the former Senshi was stepping out.

Sincerity smiled. "Hey, guys!"

"Chibiusa?" both Moon Hunter and Thunderclaw said in surprise.

"Well, drat!" Time Splitter sighed. "How was I not able to predict your arrival?"

"What's going on here?" Megatron demanded to know. "Who is that Maximal?"

"A Maximal?" Time Splitter asked in disbelief. "B-but... but the future... Crystal Cybertron..."

Megatron turned around and grabbed her with his jaw hand. "Crystal WHAT??" she shouted with rage.

"I would prefer if you stop doing that to her," Sincerity said calmly. "Although she is not like the Puu I once knew, I still don't like to see her hurt."

"Damn right she is!" Thunderclaw grumbled and pulled out her thundergun. "I might not know what's going on, but I know that you're going to put her down right now, Mega-jerk!"

"Sir! What's going on here?" Scorponok asked when he, Inferno and Blackarachnia suddenly appeared in the door. "We detected some strange energy signature in the cell block and..."

"Never mind that know! We have to deal with traitors!" Megatron snapped. He then turned towards Time Splitter with a grin. "See, now that the odds are even, we can continue! I always knew I shouldn't have trusted you. And now you are going to explain me with every detail what exactly the future you have envisioned will include, yes!"

Sincerity sighed. "I don't really have time for this..." she muttered. "Puu, you wanna come along, or not?"

Time Splitter was still in a state of shock and denial. "But... but Crystal Cybertron... what about my plans?"

Sincerity sighed. "Fine! Have it your way! Usagi, Makoto, what about you?"

"Forget it, Chibiusa!" Thunderclaw shot back. "I might not like the situation I'm in, but I like what I have become. And Setsuna - Time Splitter - made me this way, so I'm staying with her."

Moon Hunter smirked. "You really want me to give up a future where I'll rule over a multitude of planets, you little spore? I wonder what mistakes I made when I raised you... or rather, what mistakes I will make."

Blackarachnia frowned. Raised? Since when could Maximals od Predacons have normal-thinking children?

"Fine..." Sincerity sighed. "Seems you will be harder to take care of... Hotaru-chan?"

She looked over to where the little spider-bot was leaning against the wall, still somewhat shaken with the regret of almost having shot one of her best friends.

When she saw her old friend smile at her, she smiled back and nodded.

Sincerity grinned. "Great! Let's get out of here, then!"

"Well, it's about time..." Minako grumbled, feeling left out.

"I'm afraid no one is going to leave this place," Megatron said. His jaw hand was still pushing Time Splitter against the wall, while his tail pincer was aimed at Thunderclaw. "Blackarachnia, Scorponok, Inferno... subdue them!"

"Um... they already are within the prison cell, are they?" Scorponok asked in a confused voice.

"Then destroy them! Do anything you want, but make sure they won't escape!" Megatron shouted.

"Gladly, royalty!" Inferno shouted as he took his flamethrower. "Insolent Maximals! You will all BUUUURN!"

"Not today, wacko!" Sincerity grinned. A push on her wrist button, and another light circle appeared. She quickly took the surprised Minako's arm and pulled her through the circle.

When the light circle vanished, Inferno looked around the cell in confusion. "Where have the invaders gone?"

"Chibiusa-chan...?" Hotaru muttered, before a glowing circle appeared in the wall behind her.

"GAH!" she yelped as she fell right through the circle, and vanished as well.

"Well, so much for that," Blackarachnia shrugged. "Looks like they fled, Megatron."

"I can see that!" he snapped. "Well, at least we have three other traitors to take care of..."

"Release her!" Thunderclaw shouted.

Megatron smiled as he squeezed a bit with his jaw hand. Time Splitter winced as the grip around her neck tightened.

Thunderclaw looked over to her future queen, who gave her a slight nod.

Disappointed, the dinosaur girl lowered her weapons. "Fine! You win this one, Mega-dork!"

"A bit more respect would be appreciated, yes," Megatron said. "Now I would like to have a small talk with you, Time Splitter... and if I have the slightest impression you might lie to me, prepare for the utmost dire consequences!"

Time Splitter gulped. She liked to be in control of the situation, and being trapped between a set of T-Rex jaws that were attached to the arm of a tall and powerful Predacon wasn't what she would tell a situation in control.

"Well... I think that sounds reasonable..."

Megatron smirked. "I thought you would feel this way."

----

Near the Predacon base, Sincerity appeared, alongside with Minako and Hotaru.

"Hey, what's she doing here?" Cheetor shouted and aimed his weapon and the purple-haired robot girl, who jumped back in fright. "She was with the two spiders, I've seen her!"

"She's with us now, that should be enough for now. Now we should leave this place before they find out we're still nearby," Sincerity pointed out. "I can take us all back to your base, if you wish."

"I don't know..." Optimus still sounded skeptical. "I still don't know who you are, and how can I trust you this young Predacon will really not be a danger?"

"Because I say it," Minako intervened. "Now let's hurry and do what she says."

"I think we can trust her, Optimus," Ami said, meaning Sincerity. "She is an old friend... even if I remember her a bit different from what she is now..."

Optimus sighed. "Fine then, but I'll be watching you."

Sincerity smiled. "Of course! Now, let's go! Uranus, Neptune and Diana are waiting impatiently."

"Other friends of yours?" Airazor asked Rei.

"Yeah, I hope so..." Rei nodded. "Although I wonder how they got here in the first place."

"I will explain as best as I can," Sincerity promised. "Now, please step in!" And she re-opened her circle of light.

"Wow..." Cheetor couldn't hide his amazement. "What is that thing?"

"A portable space portal," Sincerity explained. "I can use it only for a day, though... Now, can we go... finally?"

"Yes, let's!" Tigatron nodded and stepped forward voluntarily.

He vanished.

"Ultra gear!" Cheetor said in awe. "Me next!"

Optimus sighed. "Well, I think we might just take our chances... let's go!"

And after the remaining robots stepped through the portal, it vanished.

----

Still holding Time Splitter within his powerful jaw grip, Megatron smiled, while his (more or less) loyal Predacons aimed their weapons at her fellow 'Senshi Preds'.

"Well, things are looking positive in my favor, yes!" Megatron grinned. "So I suppose now you plan on telling me the truth, RIGHT?"

"Let's try it this way," a voice suddenly said behind his back. "You keep your ugly fingers off her and I will restrain myself from blasting your inner circuits through the room."

Megatron turned around his head. "WHAT?"

He wasn't the only one to be surprised when he recognized the robot standing behind him, her weapon aimed at his head.

It was Time Splitter!

Scorponok looked at the Time Splitter his commander was currently pushing against the cell wall. He then looked at the second Time Splitter that was aiming her gun at his head. He then looked back again. And then forth again.

"Megatron... I think something's wrong with my optics. I'm seeing DOUBLE!"

"Apparently you are NOT seeing double, Scorponok," Megatron hissed. "Or else everyone else in this room would have the same problem. The question is, how do you manage to be at two places at the same time, Time Splitter?"

Time Splitter (the one Megatron was holding within his grip) grinned when she realized what was happening. Sometimes being able to control the fabrics of time to a certain degree just ROCKED!

Time Splitter 2 pressed her gun against Megatron's head. "You still haven't released me, Mega-dork..."

Megatron snarled. He could order his men to destroy both Time Splitters and the other traitors. But would he be willing to risk a whole month inside the restoration chamber?

"Fine..." he grumbled and dropped Time Splitter 1 to the floor. "You win... for now!"

Time Splitter 1 grinned as she stood up from the ground and walked over to her double, who was standing next to Thunderclaw and Moon Hunter (both of which still hadn't recovered from their surprise).

"So, from how far in the past or future do you come?" she asked her double with a grin.

"In a couple of moments, you will be me," her future self chuckled as she drew back her gun.

"Ah! So that means I now have to travel back a few minutes to save myself from dino-dork here?"

"Precisely?" Both Time Splitters grinned. "Time Travel is sooo cool!"

"It's just giving me a headache..." Thunderclaw groaned.

"Um, what shall we do, my queen?" Inferno asked, a bit uncertain of the situation.

"What do you think, you fool?" Megatron thundered. "GET THEM!"

"Just what I was hoping for..." Blackarachnia snickered and took aim.

But before her shots, Inferno's flamethrower or Scorponok's mini-missile could hit them, they all disappeared in a bright flash.

----

"Well, that certainly wasn't the most glorious retreat I've seen..." Thunderclaw muttered.

Moon Hunter shrugged. "Hey, at least we got away, right? So, what exactly happened back there, TS?"

Before she answered, Time Splitter looked around. "Looks like my other self is already on her way back to 'a few minutes ago'. As you might have realized, I have travelled back in time from this moment on to save my past self from Megatron's clutches."

"I thought so," Thunderclaw replied. "But how did we get away? And where are we anyway?"

"I just took us to the future," the cockroach-robot shrugged. "Just 15 minutes into the future, though... my spark still interferes with my time-travelling skills, so I can't make much bigger changes in time."

"Isn't that supposed to be against the rules?" Moon Hunter wondered.

"Well, sure, but I decided that rules suck."

"Works for me," Thunderclaw grinned and looked around the empty cell block they were still standing in. "So, where did everyone go?"

"My guess is that they believe we have teleported outside, so they most likely won't think that we will reappear exactly in this place just a short time later... but we should get out of here as fast as possible. I fear Megatron might actually figure out the trick, and I don't want to be here anymore when he finds out."

"Might be a good idea," Moon Hunter nodded.

----

Shortly after, the three renegade Senshi actually managed to trick Megatron's surveillance systems and sneaked out of the base.

"Well, this plan didn't quit work out as you had planned, did it?" Moon Hunter asked in a slightly reproachful tone of voice.

"I know!" Time Splitter shot back. "The appearance of Small Lady was something I was absolutely NOT able to predict." She gritted her teeth. "In the future I envisioned, she was sharing our dream..."

Moon Hunter smiled. "Was she obedient?"

"Yes!" Time Splitter nodded. "Obedient and loyal like no one else... and powerful!" She grinned. "The perfect general for your army!"

"Hmmmm... I like the sound of that!" Moon Hunter said dreamily. "But what might have happened to cause such a change in her?"

"I can only guess..." Time Splitter muttered. "She might be from a future that is very unlikely to happen... I always had trouble anticipating those. Or maybe some unknown, external factor is to blame... All I know is that we have to make sure this Chibiusa is not from the future we are envisioning. And if she isn't..." She smiled. "We'll have to get rid of her!"

Oh yes, she absolutely loved getting rid of unpredictable time paradoxes.

The three outcasts left the lava field and entered the open plains behind them.

"Well, getting on Megatron's good side didn't quite work out as you planned," Thunderclaw pointed out. "And on top of that, Nemesis has left. So what do you suggest we do now?"

Time Splitter grinned. "Now we get back to our little secret cave and wait what happens... Small Lady might have her own time-travelling device, but I believe she will come back for us before she'll return to her own time... and I'm also curious about what Megatron plans to do next."

"So we just hide and wait until something happens?" Thunderclaw asked in a sulky voice. "Great... how boring is that?"

"We can get back in action when we have more soldiers on our side," Moon Hunter reminded her.

"Exactly!" Time Splitter nodded. "And for that reason, I'll have to prepare our hidden pods for our last two guests... there are still two Senshi unaccounted for, you know?"

----

In the woods that surrounded the Maximal base, a certain blonde Senshi suddenly had the urge to sneeze.

"Bless you, Haruka!" Neptune said.

"Thanks..." Uranus sniffled. "I hope Chibiu... um, Sincerity will return soon."

"She will be fine," Topspeed reassured the last two human Senshi. The winged cat-robot sat up. "She said it will only take her half an hour, so I think they will arrive in a few minutes."

"And why couldn't we go to that 'Maximal' base while waiting for her?" Uranus asked. "Don't you think they would have let us in if we told them our story?"

"I don't want to tell the same story twice," Topspeed shrugged as best as a four-legged robot could. "And when Sincerity and the others arrive, she will have convinced most of them anyways... it will make things much easier this way."

"Okay, but she better hurry!" Haruka leaned back against a tree. "Because I would like to know as well how Setsuna and the others changed like that."

Topspeed shuddered. 'If you only knew, Uranus...' she thought to herself. 'If you only knew...'


	7. We're all gonna die!

"Oh, I don't believe this," Rattrap groaned when Optimus and the others returned, together with Sincerity and her entourage. "Humans, here? How the heck did that happen?"

"Nice to meet you too, rat-face!" Uranus grumbled. "I'd like to be someplace else as well..."

"Uranus? Neptune?" Ami asked in a puzzled voice. "How did you get here?"

"I brought them here," Sincerity explained. "I figured we could use their help when dealing with Time Splitter."

"...and Megatron, right?" Cheetor added.

Sincerity shook her head. "No, we can't do that... being here alone is already affecting the timeline too much. We can't let Time Splitter carry out her plans... but you, as well as Megatron and his Predacons, are supposed to be here."

"I am afraid I can't quite follow," Optimus said with a frown.

"She means there are certain rules we have to follow when we are time-travelling," Topspeed said. And those rules state that we only may interfere if the future is affected by the actions of someone who is violating these rules."

"Well, what about Megatron?" Cheetor asked. "He's been travelling through time, so isn't he violating these rules as well?"

"I can't tell you too much," Sincerity sighed. "But your presence here still maintains the balance. I'm sorry to say this, but Megatron is your own problem... we have to take care of Time Splitter."

"Isn't that a bit harsh?" Rei asked. "I mean, we could use their help as well, so wouldn't you think it might be... beneficial to help them against Megatron?"

"I... I wanna help them too," Nemesis' small voice suddenly spoke up.

"Oh that's just great!" Rattrap threw up his arms in exasperation. "Now the Pred wants to butt in. I wonder why we even allowed her to enter the ship..."

"She has changed, Rattrap!" Minako said sternly. "She has once been one of us... she won't do anything to betray us."

"Says you!" Rattrap huffed. "Once a Pred, always a Pred! That's what I say!"

"That's enough, Rattrap!" Optimus said sternly. "If Ocelot and her friends trust Nemesis, we should do so as well."

"Ocelot?" Topspeed giggled. "Who thought of that name?"

"If you have to know, I came up with it by myself." the blonde cat-robot looked down at the winged robo-kitten with a frown. "Is something wrong with it?"

"Um, no, not at all, it's just that... in Crystal Cybertron, we knew you under another name."

"Maybe we should start calling each other by our new Activation Code names," Ami suggested. "This way, we can memorize them better."

"All right, but I want a new name," Mamoru said while crossing his arms. "'Wolframator' just doesn't sound right, if you know what I mean..."

"Well, what about 'Earth Fang' or 'Timber Fang'?" Topspeed suggested.

"Excuse me to interrupt your conversation, but we have more important things to talk about than just your Activation Codes," Dinobot reminded them with a dark stare.

"Dinobot is right," Optimus said with a nod. "So... Sincerity. I understand your reason you can't help us with our Megatron problem. Nevertheless, we would like to aide fellow Maximals, so is there any way we could assist you... without violating the time-travelling rules you mentioned?"

"I'm sure I may be able to find some loophole..." Sincerity finally admitted. "And don't worry... even if we can't defeat Megatron for you, we can still help you fend off his attacks, as long as we're here. And any help of yours would be appreciated."

"So, any idea where the cockroach of time might be just now?" Cheetor asked.

"Well, we searched a bit before coming to your base," Neptune explained. "And we found several small caves that had some strange equipment stored within."

"Those must be Tarantulas' secret hideouts," Airazor assumed. "He more than often has worked on his own. And he's not the most loyal follower Megatron ever had..."

"Still, it's not like him to have multiple hideouts..." Rhinox said while scratching his chin. "Maybe Time Splitter did something similar and created her own 'lair'..."

"Well, that's just prime," Optimus sighed. "We'll just have to check out both. Sincerity, is there anything we should know about her and her companions' fighting abilities?"

"I can give you an exact report about their weapon systems and the Senshi powers their sparks are infused with."

"Good! In the meantime, Rhinox can take care of Mamoru's new Activation Code... and when you're at it, why don't you change Nemesis' affiliation to 'Maximal'?"

"I'm on it, Optimus!" the big robot nodded. "Mamoru, Nemesis, if you two would step over here..."

While Rhinox scanned the two of them, Sincerity told Optimus everything she knew about Time Splitter's, Thunderclaw's and Moon Hunter's abilities from the future.

"...Thunderclaw has this big electro-gun, and Time Splitter... well, you never really know if she is going to use her time-based powers or not. But if she does, you might actually have to fight three versions of her at once. And Moon Hunter... well, she might be your biggest problem. While she doesn't look too strong at the first glance, she has the potential of being our most dangerous adversary. Her healing abilities have been converted into destructive power, and she might even exceed Nemesis in that way..."

"Oh, is that all?" Rattrap asked with a whine. "Oh, I already know it, we're all gonna die..."

Rhinox looked up from his work for several seconds and started to count.

'Three... two... one...'

"Shut up, Rattrap!"

----

"Report!" Megatron snarled as Inferno and Terrorsaur came flying back to the Predacon base. "Have you found any trace of them?"

"Nah, not even a single one," Terrorsaur said grumpily.

"We have searched the intermediate area as well as the surrounding sectors, royalty!" Inferno saluted. "But we could find no single trace of the traitors."

"I don't know how long it will take, but I want her back!" Megatron shouted. "No one double-crosses me without suffering the consequences. Blackarachnia! Did you hear something that might give us a clue? You have spied on them... and you've been in the company of the small spider."

"The only thing I know about her is that she is definitely too immature to come up with a good hiding place," Blackarachnia said. "And to be honest, I'm glad she is gone."

"I don't care if you two become good friends or not, but I want her fire power. With Time Splitter and her companion at my side, I would've surely been able to defeat Optimus Primal once and for all. If she continues to defy me, I will extract her knowledge of future technology out of her crushed body, yeeess..."

"Well, Tarantulas may be able to do such a thing..." Blackarachnia pondered.

"And where is that blasted tarantula?" Megatron demanded to know. "He has been elusive ever since Time Splitter escaped."

"Don't you worry, I'll make sure to track him down," Blackarachnia said as she transformed into Beast Mode and scurried down the corridor.

"Make sure to drag him back here, Blackarachnia! And tell him that I don't want another traitor among my ranks. When I found out that he is plotting against me, his end will be as dire as Time Splitter's!"

When Blackarachnia was out of sight, she huffed. "Stupid dinosaur..." she muttered. "From what I know of Tarantulas, he has already tried to make the best out of this situation... the best for himself. I'll just have to see who to side with before bringing him to you."

----

Tarantulas chuckled as he stood within his hidden laboratory. In his pincers, he was holding what looked like a robotic component.

"Excellent," he whispered with glee. "Stupid little jumping spider should think twice before coming too close for me. She wanted to learn from me, eh? Well, my first lesson for her shall be: Trust no one!"

He giggled insanely while carefully prying the piece of machinery apart. "And the second lesson: Never get too close to anyone who could steal some valuable parts from you... you might not notice the theft until it's too late."

After he managed to remove one half of the metal parts from each other, he could see what he was looking for in-between them... A metal rod, about as long as his foot, with a nasty-looking blade attached to its end.

Tarantulas pulled the miniature Silence Glaive out of it's sheath and cackled maniacally: "NYAHAHAHAHAAAH, MWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAAAAAH..."

----

Time Splitter winced. She held out her arm and leaned against the cavern wall with a groan.

"Is something wrong?" Thunderclaw asked and looked up from her work.

"Well... maybe..." the Predacon of Time muttered. "Somehow I have the feeling that... something bad has happened. Something that might be a threat for our entire plan..."

"Well, duh!" Moon Hunter rolled her optics. "Of course something like that happened: The spore from the future is siding with our enemies."

"It's not that, my queen," Time Splitter sighed. "I fear it might be something even worse..." She shook her head again. "But let's concentrate on one problem at a time. I want to have these final Stasis Pods filled within this week. Thunderclaw, move that one over here!"

"You got it," nodded the pony-tailed Predacon as she moved a hovering platform through the cave and carefully put its load next to another pod that was leaning against the wall.

Time Splitter smiled as she stepped next to her queen. "Well, what do you think?"

Moon Hunters gaze wandered over the eight Stasis Pods that were aligned at the wall... each of them containing a humanoid shape within.

"Nicely done, Time Splitter," she said with a smile. "Whenever the Maximal Senshi realize what you really did to them, it will already be too late for them."

"And it won't be too long until they will join our ranks as the final Predacon Senshi, right?" Thunderclaw asked.

"They won't have much of a choice," Time Splitter grinned. "Not if we manage to finish our Uranus and Neptune Predacons in time."

Moon Hunter giggled. "I must say, that was a pretty sneaky plan of yours."

Time Splitter nodded. "Yes, I had some trouble re-programming the others, so I simply made them into Maximals... but if everything turns out as I have planned, they will beg us to join our ranks."

And with an evil grin, she walked over to one of the Stasis Pods and moved her metallic hand over the surface, while looking at the indistinct, immobile form that was resting inside...

----

"This is it, they are in there," Sincerity said confidently. "I can feel Time Splitter's and my Mom's powers..."

"So, all we have to do is go in there and give them a few warning shots?" Rattrap asked, cocking his gun.

"No," 'Blackwing' said determined. "They are our former team mates, and that's why we have to take care of them. They are our responsibility!"

"If they turn out to be more powerful for us to handle, you can intervene anytime," 'Earth Fang' told Optimus Primal.

The leader of the Maximals nodded. "All right, I'm putting my trust in your abilities. But don't be too cocky, okay?"

"You got it!" Blackwing nodded. "Meanwhile, you can contact the others and tell them we found the cave."

"Leave that to me!" Cheetor saluted.

Nemesis shivered. "Chibiusa... I mean, Sincerity-chan?"

"What is it?" the pink-haired robot asked her friend.

"I don't know how to put it, but..." The spider-girl nervously fidgeted around. "I have the feeling I am missing something... I somehow feel like I won't be able to reach full power during this battle..."

"Now don't you worry, you don't have to go full out," Uranus told her robotic foster daughter. "After all, we don't want to destroy them, just subdue them. We want to find out what caused their sudden exchange of behavior."

"I wish I could remember..." Nemesis murmured. "But I can't recall anything what happened before Time Splitter pulled me out of that Stasis Pod..."

"Now, no worrywarts allowed on board," Blackwing insisted. "We just go in there, beat our friends back to their senses and come back. Easy as that!"

"I wish it would be that easy..." Earth Fang muttered. "Well, here we go..."

"Good luck!" Optimus said as the three Senshi robots, along with the robotic Prince of Earth and the still-human Senshi of Uranus were entering the cave in front of them.

"I can't see them," Blackwing complained. "Are you sure we're right here?"

"We are," Sincerity confirmed. "My scanners pick up three moving Predacons, right around the corner. But I also can sense..." She narrowed her optics. "Quite a few other signals... strange... I can't quite say what they are supposed to be..."

"We'll find out after finishing this mission," Earth Fang said. "Are there any traps, Nemesis?" he asked the current trap expert on the team.

She shook her head. "No, and I don't think either of them would be able to put one up like Tarantulas-papa could..."

"WHAT did you call that eight-eyed freak?" Uranus hissed. "When I see him, I'm gonna pluck out his legs!"

"Pipe down!" Blackwing hissed. "They'll hear us!"

All of a sudden, the voices behind the tunnel's corner went silent. Then they could hear a gentle voice speaking: "It seems we have some uninvited guests. Thunderclaw, would you do me a favor and take care of them?"

The Maximal Senshi gasped when they recognized their princess' voice.

"With pleasure!" Makoto's unmistakable voice replied, and then a crackling sound could be heard, while a bright flash was reflected at the cavern wall in front of them, outlining the dark silhouette of the dinosaur girl that was approaching them.

"Well, there goes our surprise effect..." Blackwing sighed. "All right, guys... GO FOR IT!"

And she zipped around the corner, diving at the surprised form of Thunderclaw.

"Aaaaaah! Get off me, you feathered fire-eater!"

"Sorry, Sparky, no can do!" Blackwing grumbled as she pinned the taller robot girl to the ground.

"My - name - is - THUNDERCLAW!" her pony-tailed opponent shouted and kicked the avian robot off her chest.

Meanwhile, Earth Fang was standing in front of the robot that had been his girlfriend once.

"Usako, please don't make me do this," he said after drawing his tail-blade. "You guys are making a mistake, and you know it."

"What was that? Oh, were you talking to that weak girl you believe to be your sweetheart? I'm sorry, but I'm not like that fool. I realized that our powers can help us to create a kingdom, that will be much greater than Crystal Tokyo will ever be... and I'm gonna be its queen." She smiled at the lupine warrior invitingly. "What do you say... don't you wanna join me? I need a strong king at my side."

"You know I can't do that!" Earth Fang said grimly and raised his sword. "Is that your final decision?"

"Why are you even asking?" Moon Hunter smiled like a predator.

"I had enough of this. Princess, you forced that upon yourself... WORLD SHAKING!"

Nemesis gasped when Uranus jumped forward and threw her attack at Moon Hunter. But the leader of the Predacon Senshi didn't move... and the attack just bounced off her thick plating.

"Is that all?" she yawned. "This is what I was talking about... As robots, we are so much stronger! We can take over all planets that will oppose us! But for now... let's get rid of this pesky little human, shall we?" And she stepped towards Uranus and grabbed her wrist with a grip of iron.

"Let her go!" Earth Fang shouted. Moon Hunter just glanced at him and aimed her Moon Gun at him.

"Bang!" she simply said and pulled the trigger. The energy bullet hit the wolfman in his chest and threw him back into the cavern wall.

Moon Hunter grinned and turned her attention back to the struggling Sailor Uranus. "And now, my dear Haruka... you shall serve as a template for my latest soldier... my Predacon Senshi of Uranus!"

"Lemme go!" Uranus shouted. "I'll never be like you!"

Moon Hunter smirked... and hurled the flailing blonde across the room, right into an open Stasis Pod that was standing in one corner. Uranus gave off a short yelp of surprise, and then the lid closed. For a short while, loud banging could be heard from the inside, then everything went quiet.

Moon Hunter giggled evilly.

Nemesis stopped forward. "S-stop that, Usagi!" she said. "I don't... don't want to hurt you..."

The feral bunny-girl threw the small robot a glance. "Ah, it's the traitorous spider!" she hissed. "Nemesis, I'll only allow you to rejoin my army because of your incredible potential. With your destructive powers, planet leaders will fall down on their knees in front of us."

"No, Usagi, I won't do that for you!" Nemesis said and opened a hatch... the hatch in which her miniature Silence Glaive was stored.

Or rather, had been stored...

'Oh no!' she thought to herself as she frantically searched for her weapon. 'It's gone!'

While Blackwing and Thunderclaw were still rolling around on the cavern floor, Time Splitter and Sincerity were circling each other.

"So we see each other again, Small Lady? I have to say that it's a big disappointment for me to see you like this... a Maximal! Really, what did they do to you in the future?"

"I merely decided to follow the right path," Sincerity explained. "And I had some help as well."

"Oh, you don't say?" Time Splitter chuckled. "Let's see how you fare when I..." She reached for the Garnet Orb in the middle of her chest plate, but nothing happened. She frowned. "What the crap?"

"You won't win that way," Sincerity stated. "The Vok gave me the ability to dispel any temporal effect you're trying to create just by being near you. Admit defeat, rejoin our side, and I might deactivate that program, so you can reclaim your original position as the guardian of time."

"The Vok, eh?" Time Splitter frowned. "I just have to meet those fellows some day..."

She looked over to where Blackwing and Thunderclaw were fighting. Thunderclaw had turned into Beast Mode, intent on ripping through her former friend's leg, but the raven-haired robot had just kicked the dinosaur into the head, which sent her flying.

On the other side of the cave, Nemesis was crouching on the floor, while Earth Fang was busy deflecting his former fiancee's shots with his sword.

A stalemate, but for how long? Time Splitter knew the situation could change any instant, for the good or the bad. And with her time powers suppressed, she wasn't able to predict the outcome.

So she decided to change the odds to her favor and stepped back to the eight pods that were leaning against the wall, standing upright. Next to them, four other pods were standing, but those four were laying flat on the ground. Uranus had been thrown into one of those pods.

With a diabolic grin, Time Splitter stepped back between two of the pods and extended a wicked looking cockroach-claw from her arm, similar in appearance to a sickle.

"You just won't have any choice, 'Sincerity'... give up, or I'll kill them... and with them, any chance of the REAL Sailor Senshi to return to their original time."

And as she pressed on a button on the pod's surface, it's shaded window suddenly changed its transparency, and they all could see the face of the person that was inside.

Almost everyone let out a gasp of surprise. The only ones unfazed were the Predacon Senshi and Sincerity herself.

Blackwing almost felt her knees give away when she recognized the face.

It was her own!

"That... that's... me?" she stuttered weakly.


	8. Double the Senshi, double the fun

"That's... Rei?" Earth Fang asked in surprise. "But... but how?" 

"Wouldn't you want to know," Time Splitter grinned. "I have another surprise for you." She walked alongside the pods, never dropping her weapon, and touched a small button on each of them. 

The frontal windows of the pods all got translucent, so they were able to see who was lying inside them. 

"Minako... Makoto... Ami... Usagi?" Blackwing's eyes darted back and forth between Moon Hunter and her human double which was resting inside one of the pods. 

"As well as you, Mamoru, Hotaru... and the member of my little collection I am most proud of: Setsuna Meioh, better known as Sailor Pluto!" And she stepped next to her double with a big grin on her face. 

"How?" Earth Fang muttered. "How can this be? How can we be here, and at the same time, in there...?" 

"T-time travel?" Blackwing assumed nervously. 

"Nothing like that," Time Splitter smiled. "You see, those humans in there are our inferior originals... all of us have been created after their image. You see, after I managed to imprison Setsuna, I lured the rest of the Senshi into a trap and caught them all at once... well, most of them. I was then able to create perfect copies from them... superior, robotic copies that would be much better suited as the rulers of this pathetic little planet. But Earth will just be the beginning." 

"My empire will be bigger than even Megatron could imagine," Moon Hunter said with a smile. "And I will give every single intelligent race in the universe the honor of serving me." 

"That can't be true!" Blackwing gasped. 

"It is true..." Nemesis said sadly. "I've seen them before... back when I was a Predacon." She sighed. "It might be hard for you to accept, Blackwing, but... you are not the real Sailor Mars." 

"But we have all of their powers," Earth Fang protested. "How can you copy those?" 

"All is possible when working with robot sparks," Time Splitter sneered. I had to create artificial versions of your Senshi artifacts, such as the Silence Glaive, or Sailor Moon's Moon Rod." 

"I like this version better," Moon Hunter said as she twirled her pistol. 

"Don't be too smug about your powers, mother," Sincerity said firmly. "The true Usagi has a power that you will never be able to attain, if you don't change your ways." 

"And what power is that supposed to be, treacherous daughter?" Moon Hunter asked in a bored voice. 

"Simple: It's the power of love!" 

Moon Hunter made a gagging sound. 

"Wait a minute..." Blackwing suddenly gasped. "Sincerity... you knew?" 

"I'm sorry I couldn't tell you earlier," the pink-haired Maximal apologized. "But I had to keep a promise only to tell the most necessary things to you. You found out by yourself, didn't you?" 

"Yes, but I would have preferred a little warning first..." the raven-winged girl grumbled. 

"Enough of this!" Thunderclaw shouted, brandishing her electro-gun. "What are we going to do with them?" 

"We are going to put them back into their Stasis Pods for a while," Time Splitter replied. "And after we are finished with them, they will share our opinions on things. And when we are all together, neither Megatron nor those silly Maximals will be able to stop us." She glared at Nemesis. "And this time, I will make sure to make no mistakes!" 

"Why did you make us Maximals in the first place?" Earth Fang asked. "You could have control over us right from the beginning." 

"True, but an unexpected accident messed up your programming. And when I brought you through time and space... the malfunctioning Stasis Pods landed in a completely different location. Some time vortex must have caused it... I hate those things!" 

"You're wrong," Sincerity said. "I was the one who caused it." 

Now Time Splitter was surprised. "Wh-what? H-how could you...?" 

Sincerity glanced down at the little hatch in her chest plate, where the small time key was hidden. "Back home, I had to act like a little pickpocket... and after I acquired the time key, I met with a few individuals who provided me with a few additional powers. I tried taking the new robots you created away, so they could become fighters for good instead of evil. I only managed to save a few of them though..." 

"And what did you gain from it?" Moon Hunter sneered. "Nothing! Now we will turn every single one of you into Predacons, and everything you did was in vain." 

"Not quite!" Sincerity said with a smile. 

And mentally, she shouted: 'Now, Gryphika!' 

Suddenly, the lid from one of the two remaining Stasis Pods that were standing at the side came flying off, and Thunderclaw had to duck so it wouldn't hit her. 

A muscular creature came diving out of the pod. Thunderclaw had the image of a feline-looking body, with the feathered wings and curved beak of a bird of prey. 

The big griffin threw Thunderclaw to the ground, and Sincerity used the moment of surprise to fire a small cable out of her wrist which wrapped itself around Time Splitters body. She pulled, and the Predacon stumbled to the ground with a groan. 

Nemesis, Blackwing and Earth Fang were as surprised as the Predacon Senshi had been, but when Moon Hunter pulled out her Moon Gun with a snarl, aiming at the creature that was sitting on Thunderclaw's chest, Earth Fang reacted swiftly, knocking the weapon out of her hand. His sword stopped just millimeters from her face. 

"I suggest you surrender, Moon Hunter!" 

Sincerity made sure that Time Splitter was tied up, then she and Nemesis stepped next to Thunderclaw and the griffin. 

"You can get off now, Gryphika," Sincerity said. 

"Too bad!" the griffin snarled. "I was just gonna have a snack!" 

Blackwing stared at the creature in astonishment. "Sincerity, who...?" 

"Wouldn't you like to know?" Sincerity asked, imitating Time Splitter's grin from earlier. "Gryphika, you wanna show them?" 

"With pleasure!" the griffin nodded. "Gryphika - Maximize!" 

And in a fluid motion, she transformed into a more humanoid form... a form that looked surprisingly similar to the human form of Sailor Uranus. 

"You... you are Haruka's copy?" Blackwing gasped in surprise. "But how...?" 

"Simple, her pod was one of the few I managed to re-program before Time Splitter brainwashed Nemesis, Moon Hunter and Thunderclaw. I am surprised she didn't find out by now. After her creation was complete, I informed her about the situation via our private communication channel. I was able to convince her that she was NOT the real Uranus, and as she was still a Maximal, she agreed to take down Thunderclaw as soon as she left the pod." 

"What a rush..." Blackwing groaned and shook her head. 

Gryphika grinned. "You said it, girl!" 

Sincerity produced more cables to tie up Thunderclaw and Moon Hunter. "You'll never get away with this!" Moon Hunter spat. 

"I'm afraid we already have, meatball brain!" Blackwing grinned. 

"Sincerity-chan, shouldn't we release the real Senshi? They have been imprisoned for quite a long time..." 

"You are right, Nemesis," Sincerity nodded and stepped next to the pod in which Uranus had fallen. 

She pressed a button, and shortly after, the pod opened. 

Sincerity offered the groggy Uranus a hand. "Are you all right?" 

"Yeah, I think so..." Haruka groaned and rubbed her head. "Man, what hit me...?" 

She then took a look at her robotic counterpart. "What the crap?" 

Gryphika gave her a sly smile and waved. "Hi there, sister!" 

"I think I'm going to have a headache..." Haruka moaned. "Can anyone tell me what's going on here?" 

Suddenly, Earth Fang's communicator beeped. He answered: "Earth Fang here!" 

"This is Optimus speaking! Say, we got a bit worried about you guys... is everything all right in there?" 

Earth Fang grinned. "Yeah, I'd say so. Everything under control!" 

"Well, that's good to hear,' Optimus replied. "Rattrap's starting to get on my nerves here. Besides, we got a small problem here..." 

"We'll be outside as fast as we can. Did you already contact the others?" 

"See, this is exactly the problem we have... they are not responding." 

"What?" 

----

Ocelot gulped as she hang inside the giant spider web, upside-down. "I have the feeling I'm not going to like this..." 

Chill Wind, stuck in another web, sweat-dropped. "Regarding our current situation, I'd say you're right." 

"Just shut up already and let me die in peace!" Dinobot growled. 

Tarantulas stepped up to his hostages, cackling with glee. Attached to his right claw was a curved blade that looked surprisingly familiar to the Maximal Senshi. 

"Ready when you are, my little guinea pigs!" the spider chuckled as he raised the arm with the attached Silence Glaive. 

----

"I don't like this..." Earth Fang murmured as he was outside, back with Optimus and the other Maximals. "The only reason why they wouldn't answer would be if they were in trouble." 

"But what kind of trouble could they run into?" Cheetor wondered. "Dinobot, Tigatron and Airazor are with them, and I know they can handle Preds." 

"Except if they stepped into a... a trap!" Rattrap realized. 

Optimus sighed. "Tarantulas, I would presume..." 

"Well, only one way to make sure..." Earth Fang said. He walked back into the cave, where the others were just tying Time Splitter, Moon Hunter and Thunderclaw to a few stalagmites with Sincerity's metal cables. 

"Well, now this is a sight I could live with," Rattrap grinned as he looked down at the imprisoned Predacon Senshi. 

"Bite me, vermin!" Time Splitter spat. 

Rattrap took a glance at her cockroach feelers before replying: "Well, if you insist... pest!" 

"Enough of that!" Earth Fang shouted. "Blackwing, could you please try and contact the others? We have to know if Tarantulas or some other Predacon managed to get them..." 

The raven Maximal snarled. "If he did, I'll pluck out his legs and peck them up for dinner!" 

Nemesis looked a bit pale at that description. 

Blackwing activated the 'Senshi Channel'. 'This is Blackwing! Ocelot, Chill Wind, can you hear me?' 

'Hey, how nice of you to call!' came the sarcastic reply of a certain, blonde feline robot. 'Now I can die with your gentle voice in my ears... or rather, in my head.' 

'What happened? We tried contacting you!' 

'Oh nothing... we just stepped into a few, BIG spider webs, and now chuckles here wants to use his new toy on us.' 

"So it was Tarantulas," she said out loud, which earned her worried looks of Earth Fang and the others. 'We'll come as fast as we can. You are still in the other cave?' 

'Well, I would get out of here if my legs weren't stuck to that infernal web! Please, take all the time you need, we aren't in a hurry... EXCEPT THAT THE EIGHT-EYED FREAK IS GOING TO USE HOTARU'S SILENCE GLAIVE ON US!' 

"Wh-what?" Blackwing gasped. 

"What's wrong?" Nemesis asked. 

Blackwing looked down at the little jumping spider and gulped. "Well, I hate to say it, but... there might be the chance that Tarantulas will be using YOUR weapon of mass destruction... on our friends." 

Nemesis gasped. "Oh no! We have to save them! Sincerity-chan, you still have a few of those portal thingies...?" 

Sincerity shook her head. "I'm fresh out of them, I'm afraid..." 

"Damn!" Earth Fang muttered. "There has got to be a way to get there in time." 

At that moment, Gryphika arrived, carrying the last of the pods containing the original Senshi. "Where do I put this?" she asked. 

Haruka looked at her, full of jealousy. "I want to be that strong as well... it's just not fair!" 

Gryphika grinned at her human counterpart. "Well, not everyone can be a powerful, half-bird, half-lion Maximal fuzor like me!" 

"Um, put her down here, Gryphika," Blackwing said, and the griffin-girl obeyed. 

Sincerity looked into the still closed pod... and smiled. "I think we have yet a chance to get there in time... we only have to wake up our sleeping beauty here!" 

The others looked into the pod... and saw Setsuna's face. 

----

Tarantulas grinned as he held the pointy end of the Silence Glaive up to Chill Wind's chin. "Now, do you want to be first, my pretty?" 

"That's just like you, spider!" Dinobot hissed. "You coward! A true fighter wouldn't steep as low as to use such traps." 

"As much as I would love to listen to your tiring banter, Dinobot..." Tarantulas yawned. "I have more important things to do..." He turned back to Chill Wind. "Now answer me, fox: How do I use this thing?" 

Chill Wind was surprised. She didn't even think once of the possibility that the maniac wouldn't know how to activate the deadly little artifact. 

"Um, I... I don't know..." 

Tarantulas narrowed his eyes... all eight of them. "You're lying!" he said. 

"I-it's true," the arctic fox-bot winced. "We don't know anything about the technology of our Predacon counterparts..." 

"Counterparts, eh?" Tarantulas asked. "So there is some connection between you guys and Time Splitter... I wonder what other questions you can answer. Well maybe if I manage to get this little contraption working, we can work something out..." 

"Tarantulas, you don't even know if that is a destructive weapon or not," Airazor shouted from the back of the cave. 

The spider laughed. "Oh, please! If that thing doesn't look like a weapon, then what?" 

"It COULD be something else..." Airazor muttered uncertainly. 

Tarantulas examined the glaive carefully and said: "Well, it DOES look like an oversized can opener... but I'm not that easily fooled." He cackled. 

"That's it..." Sailor Neptune murmured. "We're all doomed... I wish I had listened to Haruka and stayed home..." 

He winced when he heard footsteps approaching him from behind... the footsteps of a spider with long, spindly legs. 

"What do you want now, witch?" he spat. 

Blackarachnia smirked. "Just seeing what you're up to. Well, I can see you've been busy. Is there a reason why you didn't report to Megatron that you managed to capture five Maximals and a human?" 

"None of your business, wench!" he hissed. 

The black widow was unimpressed. "Watcha got there, chuckles?" 

"Nothing! Leave me alone!" 

She transformed into robot mode and looked at the Silence Glaive with interest. "Looks like one BIG can opener... do you plan on having canned food for dinner? I thought you preferred your prey alive..." 

"It's NOT a can opener!" Tarantulas screamed in frustration. "It's a weapon of mass destruction, you imbecile!" 

Blackarachnia grinned. "I KNEW it!" 

He glared at her. "I hate you!" 

"Oh, don't mind us, we're just dangling here, waiting for our death..." Ocelot mumbled. 

"You WANNA die that quickly?" Tigatron asked. 

Dinobot grinned. "I wouldn't mind, at least that awful whining would stop." 

Ocelot gave him a dark glare. "You're mean!" 

Blackarachnia winced. "For once I have to agree with dino-butt over there... why don't you try it on the blonde brat first? I can't stand her whiny voice." 

Tarantulas mumbled something under his breath. 

The female spider raised a claw to her non-existent ears. "What was that?" 

"I said I don't know how to use it, happy now?" he grimaced. 

"Oh, that can't be that difficult, here, let Auntie Blackarachnia take a look..." 

"Very funny, witch! Hey, give that back!" 

Blackarachnia looked at the device. "Now that's strange... I can't see any button or anything. Are you really sure it's not just a can opener?" 

"NO, IT'S NOT!" the male spider screamed. 

"Tarantulas-papa, if you were so kind and gave me back my glaive..." 

A tiny voice of despair echoed through the tarantula's head: 'No! It can't be! Not her! Not that pesky little spider...' 

"Nemesis..." he grumbled. "How many times do I have to tell you, I'm NOT your..." 

He turned around... and his eyes went wide when he saw two versions of the small, purple-haired girl standing in front of him. A robot... and a human! 

Both of them grinned at him. "Surprise!" Sailor Saturn said and aimed her own Silence Glaive at him... the ORIGINAL Silence Glaive. 

All around them, the original, human Sailor Senshi were standing, accompanied by the Maximals. 

Pluto hugged her Garnet Rod to her. "Ah, how nice to make use of you again, baby! I just LOVE it!" 

Earth Fang was standing next to Tuxedo Mask. Blackwing was standing next to Sailor Mars. Gryphika was standing next to Sailor Uranus. Sailor Moon, Jupiter, Venus and Mercury were standing to their left, while Optimus, Rattrap and Cheetor were standing to their right. 

"I think the fun's over, Tarantulas!" Earth Fang said, exchanging a quick smirk with his human double. 

Rattrap grinned. "Or as my great-aunt Arcee would say: End of the line, loser!" 

Ocelot and Chill Wind stared at their human doubles in disbelief. 

"Guys... just WHAT THE HECK is going on here?" Ocelot asked. 

Blackarachnia laughed nervously. Either Tarantulas would be able to figure out how this so-called 'weapon of mass destruction' worked... or they were in trouble. She didn't know where those humans came from, or why they looked like many of the present Maximals, but she realized a situation where she was outnumbered when she saw one. 

So she meekly stepped back with a chuckle and said: "Well, they're all yours!" 

Tarantulas snarled. This shouldn't be so hard... He threateningly aimed Nemesis Mini-Glaive at his opponents. "Surrender now... or I'll destroy you!" 

He saw how most of the humans backed off, and even a few of the Maximals, but both Nemesis and that human girl that looked so much like her smiled at him. 

"Don't worry," Hotaru said confidently. "He can't harm us." 

"Are you sure about this?" Rei asked nervously. She, along with the other Senshi, knew what Hotaru's real Silence Glaive was capable of, and she clearly didn't want to be at the receiving end of such an attack, no sir! 

"Well, he obviously doesn't know how to use the device..." Ami murmured. 

"Even if he would, it would do him no good," Pluto smirked. "The only one who can use this weapon is one born with the powers of Saturn." 

"Exactly!" Nemesis nodded. "And while I am not the reincarnation of Sailor Saturn from the Silver Millennium, my spark contains copied fragments from Hotaru's soul... Time Splitter told me as much, back when I was still on her side." 

"Ah, so that's why we all can use Senshi-like powers!" Chill Wind nodded in understanding, back where she was hanging. 

Ami smiled at her robot double. It was nice to see someone who was thinking in such a similar way than herself, and at the same time, looked so similar to her. Would she not be a robot, she could almost pass for her twin sister. 

"You don't fool me!" Tarantulas snapped. "I know I can control this power! I'll show you!" He grabbed the handle with his claw, raised it above his head, and brought it down, hard. 

But nothing happened. 

"Come on, you stupid thing, work!" the tarantula hissed and waved the device around in the air. He tried searching for a hidden button, turned it around and even tried twisting the handle. Finally, he got sick of it and hurled the sharp, technological Senshi artifact at the two, purple-haired girls standing in front of him. 

Nemesis skillfully caught it and inserted it back into her arm. "Thank you, Tarantulas-papa!" she smiled. 

"D-don't call me that!" 

Gryphika frowned. If Nemesis was calling that creep her 'papa', instead of herself, she would have to talk a few serious words with her... 

"Give up, Tarantulas!" Optimus said. "It's over!" 

"NEVER!" the insane Predacon spy yelled and fired his leg guns at Hotaru. Nemesis gasped and wanted to jump in front of her human counterpart, but Saturn held her back. 

She held up her own glaive. "Silence Wall!" 

A shimmering, spherical wall of energy appeared in front of them and deflected the incoming bullets. 

"I ask you one time," Saturn said. "Do you yield?" 

"Forget it!" 

Saturn looked at the Predacon with sad eyes. "Then I am sorry... SILENCE GLAIVE SURPRISE!" 

She slashed out with her glaive, and a purple shimmering trail of energy swept after the sharp blade. The attack hit Tarantulas frontally and severed his upper body from its lower half. It also severed his right arm and most of his spider legs. 

Blackarachnia winced as she saw the crippled, twitching form of Tarantulas. 

"Now I know how Waspinator must feel..." Tarantulas whined. 

"Good work!" Nemesis told her human double. Saturn smiled back at her. 

"Now that this guy has been dealt with, what should we do with her?" Gryphika gestured at the wincing Blackarachnia. 

"N-now don't do anything too hasty," the black widow said quickly while eyeing Saturn's weapon nervously. And she knew very well that Nemesis was owning a very similar item. Not to mention the big amount of human and Maximal warriors that were blocking the only way out of the cave... 

Blackwing frowned. "Should we do the same with her? I don't like the idea that she could go back to Megatron..." She aimed her plasma gun at her. "I say we have a spider barbecue tonight." 

Sailor Mars grinned. "You have the best ideas," she said and called forth her Mars Sniper Bow, aiming it at the nervous spider. 

"No, please don't!" Everyone looked at Nemesis in surprise. 

"Eh, why not, kiddo?" Rattrap asked. "She's a Predacon, and as I always say, the only good Pred is a scrapped Pred." 

"Still, I used to be a Predacon as well," Nemesis said. "And, well... I can't help but feel pity for her. Maybe you won't be able to convince her of becoming a Maximal today..." 

"You bet I won't!" Blackarachnia hissed. 

"But everyone deserves a chance," Nemesis claimed. "So, please, let her go for today... only this once!" 

Saturn nodded. "Yes, that's what I'd say too." 

Optimus narrowed his eyes. Cheetor was confused and Rattrap was downright flabbergasted. Most of the Senshi - humans and Maximals alike - were uncertain about the small girls' decisions. 

Pluto and Sincerity, however, smiled at them proudly, while Sailor Moon just stepped forward and said: "I think they are right. I'm not willing to destroy anyone who can make his own decisions... no matter if it's a living creature or a machine. As long as she has a conscience, she has the gift of choice. And who knows, maybe someday she'll make the right choice..." 

Mars grinned. "That's our princess!" 

Blackarachnia looked at the Senshi in disbelief. "You girls are crazy, you know that?" 

Optimus finally lowered his weapons. "Fine," he said. "There is a certain wisdom in your words. Blackarachnia, I'll let you crawl back to Megatron for today... you may take Tarantulas with you if you wish... or whats left of him." 

"How generous!" spat the crippled, male spider. 

Blackarachnia was confused, but she wasn't one to look a gift horse in the mouth. She looked at Tarantulas, shrugged and picked up his torso. "You owe me for this, chuckles!" she muttered. 

"Bite me, witch!" Tarantulas hissed. 

She smirked. "Maybe some other time!" She then turned around and saw that the Maximals were letting her go towards the exit of the cavern. Nervously, she walked past them, expecting a trick. She was very surprised when she was able to reach the exit without getting a bullet into the back of her head. 

She grimaced as she turned around to the Maximals one last time. "So long, you fools!" And then, she was gone. 

"Are you insane?" Dinobot growled. "You just let an enemy go! We should have killed her right on the spot, along with Tarantulas! Then we would have had two enemies less to worry about." 

"Aw, shut yer trap, chopperface!" Rattrap shouted. "I don't like the idea either, but I have to admit, the girlies were right." 

"Having mercy on an enemy is not a sign of weakness, Dinobot!" Optimus explained. "That's something you still have to understand." 

"Weak-minded fools!" Dinobot grumbled. 

"Um... now that this is settled... would you mind and LET US DOWN ALREADY?" Ocelot screamed. "Oh, and I would like to know what I am doing over there when I know that I'm currently entangled in spider web." 

Minako grimaced. "I don't know what's worse..." she muttered. "Seeing a robot that looks so much like me hanging upside-down inside a giant spider web... or the fact that I'm just realizing how annoying I can be." 

Topspeed laughed. "Well, Daddy would surely agree with you, if he were here." 

----

Meanwhile... 

Time Splitter looked up when a dark shadow fell on her face. 

"Oh great..." she groaned. "Just who I need to see..." 

"Well, hello again, Time Splitter!" Megatron said smugly. "It seems like your plans didn't quite work out as you had assumed, right?" 

"Why do you care?" Thunderclaw snapped as she struggled against the metal cable which was still holding her. 

"Simple, I know you are capable fighters, but on your own, you would stand no chance against the Maximals and their new allies. So I am offering you a truce... and a chance to work for me again. What do you say?" 

Time Splitter looked as if she would like to give the smug Predacon leader a swift kick. But as she looked over to her princess, Moon Hunter gave her a small nod. 

"Very well..." the cockroach of time muttered. "It seems as if we don't have any other choice." 

Megatron grinned. "I thought you would feel this way. Oh, but this time... let there be no secrecy between us, yes? And we still have to teach you who is in charge here, yes!" 

"Why do I have the feeling that this won't be good?" groaned Thunderclaw, as Inferno, Waspinator, Scorponok and Terrosaur entered the cave, pulling her and her team mates to their feet. 

Megatron grinned. "I think it's time... to teach you and your friends... to know your place. Yeeeess!" 

And as the Predacons dragged the three renegade Senshi out of the cave, their leader let out an evil chuckle. 


	9. Counter measures for temporal anomalies

"So now what?" Ocelot asked after she, Chill Wind and the rest of the captured Maximals had been released from Tarantulas' traps. "What do we do, now that there are two of us?" 

Sailor Venus shrugged. "Don't look at me, I'm as clueless as you are." 

"I think this is great," Mars said as she grinned at her robotic double. "She is like a twin sister I never had. Well... even if she's a robotic sister..." 

"Somehow I have the feeling I shouldn't exist at all..." Chill Wind mumbled. "I have fake memories inside my head, memories about people and places I've never seen before in my life... if you can call this existence a life!" 

"Er, it's not that bad, being a Maximal," Rattrap shrugged. "It worked out quite well for me." 

"That's because you were born one," Earth Fang reminded the buck-toothed robot. 

"Erm, I... guess that's kinda true," Rattrap admitted. 

"I don't see why you shouldn't have a right to exist," Sailor Moon suddenly spoke up. "Whatever did you do wrong? While I won't be able to forgive my double and Time Splitter for what I did, I could never wish for them that they had never been created in the first place. Who knows, maybe she will see the errors of her ways some day... just like Nemesis did." 

"I sure hope so," Sincerity murmured. "For my sake..." 

Everyone looked at Sincerity. Nobody had thought about what would happen to Sincerity. 

"So, you aren't really the daughter of Queen Serenity and King Endymion after all?" Chill Wind asked. 

Sincerity shook her head. "No, I am the daughter of Predacon Queen Moon Hunter and her husband, King Earth Fang." 

Everyone looked at the surprised wolf transformer. 

"But... but that would mean that in the future... I'll become just like them!" he gasped. 

"Not necessarily," Pluto pointed out. "It's just one of several futures. We don't really know what will happen. It all depends on what happens to them now. Sincerity might very well not be created at all... or she will be the daughter of a rehabilitated Moon Hunter..." 

"What a joke!" Dinobot huffed. "Neither Predacon nor Maximals are supposed to have children, ever!" 

"Well, we can't say for sure what the future will bring," Optimus stated. "Still, the question remains what we should do." 

"The most important thing is that we, the original Senshi, will get back to our own time," Pluto pointed out. "The time line is already scrambled enough as it is. We have to secure that everything will happen as it's supposed to be." 

"And what about us? And the Predacon Senshi?" Blackwing asked. 

"I have a suggestion," Earth Fang spoke up. "But you probably won't like it." He looked at Optimus. 

The fearless leader sighed. "Shoot." 

"Well, if you don't mind, we could always stay here... but that would also mean that the Predacon Senshi can't be allowed to leave this time by themselves. We would have to make sure that they don't make any more changes than your own time travel would have done anyway." 

"Taking care of an extra troop of Predacons?" Cheetor groaned. "Oh, please tell me you're kidding..." 

"Eh, your acoustic sensors are working just fine, pussycat," Rattrap said. "Because I believe I just heard the same thing... although I can't believe he's serious..." 

Optimus rubbed his chin. "Well, it's always a possibility... it's not like we haven't the same problem with Megatron. And with more help on our side, we should be able to take care of the additional help." 

"But would they even be willing to stay in a time, a world they know nothing about?" Jupiter asked with concern. 

Ocelot grinned. "Ah, I don't mind! Besides, I already see a few benefits of being here..." She looked at Cheetor dreamily. 

Blackwing shrugged. "What am I supposed to do in Juuban if no one there knows me at all? Besides, I doubt it'd be the right place for robots like ourselves..." 

"I'm for it," Earth Fang nodded. "We have to make sure that Time Splitter and the others won't do anything... well, anything bad." 

Nemesis smiled. "I like it here. And Optimus and the others seem to be nice people. Besides, I think it will be funny to see Tarantulas-papa and Blackarachnia-mama again..." 

'Again with those two...' Gryphika frowned. 'One of these days, I'll just have to take a look at the girl's central circuits...' 

Everyone looked at Chill Wind. 

She sighed. "Well, I guess it's better than nothing..." she finally said. 

"Okay, that only leaves one of us," Ocelot smirked. "What about you, um, Gryphika?" 

Gryphika frowned. "Well, as I am the newest of the bunch, I'll just have to agree with you... but still I'm a bit disappointed... I mean, it's not like I have someone like my... my human double has." She looked at Uranus and Neptune with envy. 

Michiru smiled. "Don't worry! If that is all you need... Haruka already told me how you came to be. If everyone agrees, we can use the final pod back in Time Splitter's cave to create a double-me." 

"And we could make sure that it won't turn into a Predacon," Optimus nodded. 

A hint of happiness and hope appeared on Gryphika's face. "Well, if you say so... what are we waiting for?" 

"Yes, we should go back anyways," Earth Fang nodded. "We left Time Splitter and the others back there..." 

----

Blackwing looked at the cut metal ropes that were scattered all over the cavern floor. "I can't believe this!" she snarled. "They got away!" 

Tigatron came inside. "I found multiple footsteps outside. And one trail was clearly made by T-Rex feet." 

"Megatron..." Optimus scowled. "Figures he wouldn't just give up an ally with Time Splitter's abilities..." 

"Great, now we have no other choice... we have to stay here and help the other Maximals," Chill Wind sighed. 

Ocelot shrugged. "You say that as if it's something bad..." 

"Well, I'm not complaining," Gryphika smirked as she came back from the back part of the cavern, accompanied by Uranus, Neptune... and an elegant-looking dolphin with turquoise-colored skin. It was hovering in mid-air. 

Airazor smiled. "Nice flight mode!" 

The dolphin smiled back. "Thanks!" it said in Michiru's voice. "Siren, maximize!" And in a fluid motion, she turned into a beautiful, female robot that looked very much like the Senshi of Neptune. 

Michiru smiled. "I always wanted to have a sister. Even if we won't be able to see each other very often..." 

"You look nice, Siren-mama!" Nemesis gushed. 

"So this is it?" Sailor Moon asked. "We just go home like that? I mean... can't we just help them defeat the Predacons?" 

"I'm afraid that won't work," Sailor Pluto sighed. "The fact that I had never been able to predict the arrival of the Maximals and Predacons on this planet shows that they are possibly meant to be here. And I can't interfere with past events as long as I have no proof that they won't change the known future... Besides, our presence in our own time is important." 

"Well, I guess you're right, but still..." Usagi didn't look too happy when she imagined leaving everyone behind like this. 

Tuxedo Mask patted her shoulder. "It's their decision! And if they manage to help Optimus and the other Maximals with their own problems, it will only be beneficial for our own time." 

"There's still one thing I'm worried about..." Sailor Mars muttered. "If Time Splitter is a robot copy of Pluto and has her own powers... wouldn't she be able to escape by time traveling?" 

"Not without this," Pluto grinned and held up a certain, spherical item. 

"It's Time Splitter's artificial Garnet Orb!" Nemesis realized with a gasp. 

Pluto nodded. "That's right, and I will make sure to get rid of it as soon as we are back in our own time." 

"Well, good riddance, I'd say," Rattrap smirked. "Too bad you can't do the same with Megatron and Time Splitter, eh? Well, beggars can't be choosers..." 

Then it was time to say goodbye. Nemesis hugged her human counterpart. "Be sure to come by for a visit in the future," Nemesis said with a smirk.

Hotaru laughed. "Maybe in a few thousand years..." 

"Are you going to be okay?" Sailor Moon asked Chill Wind with worry. The fox girl seemed to take her fate worse than the others. 

"I guess it's not too bad," Chill Wind shrugged. "Besides, I am curious to find out more about Maximal technology..." 

"Now you two take care, you hear me?" Minako said to her double and Cheetor. "And remember to play nice!" 

Ocelot put an arm around her new boyfriend and grinned. "No worries, we will!" Cheetor smiled dreamily. 

And then the human Senshi stood in a circle, all around Sailor Pluto, who was holding her Garnet Rod with both hands. 

"And tell Luna and Artemis I'm sorry for having lied about being their daughter," Topspeed shouted after them, just as Pluto opened the Time Gates. 

And then they were gone. 

Dinobot huffed. "Well, good riddance..." He winced when Airazor smacked the backside of his head. 

"So, I guess that means it's time for us to say goodbye as well," Sincerity smirked. 

"Already?" Nemesis whined. "Awww, but you'll come for a visit, right?" 

"If Chibiusa can visit her friends in the past, sure, why not?" the dragon-girl smirked. She looked at Earth Fang and Optimus. "Well, I leave everything in your hands. You think you can take care of both Megatron and my Mom?" 

"You can count on that!" Earth Fang nodded. 

"Eh, we'll get by somehow," Rattrap shrugged before Optimus could reply. 

Sincerity activated her own, artificial time key. "Well then, for a better future... until we meet again!" 

And then she and Topspeed vanished just as the human Senshi did. 

Chill Wind shivered. 'Strange,' she thought to herself. 'Why do I have this weird feeling... of foreboding?' 

----

The stasis pod opened with a hiss. Sailor Pluto looked inside... and gasped. "It's empty?" she wondered. "But how could I have missed something like this...?" 

"The same way you missed me," a voice behind her spoke up. And before Pluto could react, a strong hand that had a metallic, pink hue to it shoved her into the stasis pod and closed the lid. 

Sincerity smiled as she pressed a few buttons. "There, this should take care of everything..." 

Topspeed walked up to her. "Are you sure this is the right way?" she asked. 

"I am," Sincerity nodded. "The Vok told me: The only way I will exist at all is to make sure that Setsuna becomes Time Splitter. Still, I hope that they will be able to turn my mother into a Maximal Senshi one day..." 

The two layers of memories irritated her. After the original Senshi had returned to her time line, she got an additional set of memories, based upon a peaceful Crystal Cybertron on a faraway planet. And she was hoping with all her might that this was the future she would be returning to. 

She looked down at the stasis pod and the dark shape of Sailor Pluto underneath the lid. "I'm sorry I had to do this," she murmured. "But now our survival is assured." 

She stepped back and petted her winged robot cat behind her ears. "Let's go, Topspeed... let's go home!" 

And once again, she activated her time key. 

----

To be continued (?)


End file.
